You Never Know When
by PurpleTitan
Summary: After "Crash and Burn" Sara sees a familiar face the bar. What happens next makes Grissom realize his true feelings for Sara, and both their lives are changed forever. Its up to them to dicide wether it was for the better or not. Rated for future chapters
1. Prologue Chapter 1

**Note: Hello everyone! Well, this is only my second story, but I've had it in my head for a while now. It's a little weird…but if you don't like it, don't be mean. This takes place during season 3. No telling how long this story will be, but it should be **_**a lot **_**longer than my last!**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing, all mistakes are mine. Some lines are barrowed from/inspired by scenes from the episode 'Crash and Burn'.**

**Prologue**

Stretching, Sara Sidle leaned up from her pillow, letting out a tired yawn. She was running her fingers through her hair when she felt someone put a hand on her shoulder. Startled, she jumped.

"Sorry," said Sara's sleepy boyfriend, Hank Peddigrew.

"I thought you were still asleep. You scared the hell out of me."

He smiled, sat up and kissed her cheek. "Are you sure you're okay with me going in early?" She asked, leaning into him. He nodded, "I already told you I was. I should be getting home soon, anyway."

"Okay," She said as they both got out of bed. As Sara headed for the bathroom, Hank began pulling on his shirt. "Want me to come over tomorrow night?" He asked. "That would be great!" Sara called, stepping into the shower.

The two of them had been together for just over a year. They had met through work, which, Sara knew probably wasn't a good thing; especially after the Tom Haviland case, when their relationship was made public. She'd never been so embarrassed in all her life. But Hank was a good man. He'd been there for her.

Stepping out of the shower, she started getting ready for work. After about thirty minutes, she was completely ready. She picked up her purse, and headed for her cell phone. After picking it up, she noticed that she had an unread message from Hank. She anxiously opened it.

_Sara, _

_Got called in early. Wanted you to know that my cell will be off. See you tomorrow night!_

She looked down at the phone, smiling sadly. She wanted to text him back, but figured it would be pointless, considering his phone was turned off. Sighing, she walked out the door, and drove to work.

If only she knew the real reason for his phone being off.

XX

Sara arrived at the lab at about seven; a good three hours before her shift started. She didn't mind, though, she really wanted to wrap up her case before shift started. An old man had been found at the bottom of the staircase that led to his front porch. It looked like an accident; all she had to do was prove it.

XX

It was now nine thirty, and Sara had successfully finished her case. As she thought, it turned out to be an accident. The poor old man had tripped, after stepping on his untied shoelace, and tumbled down the stairs, hitting his head on the driveway, which ultimately killed him. As Sara got up from her chair, she looked down at her shoes, just in case.

Giggling to herself, she walked to the break room, where she found her boss, Gil Grissom, sipping his coffee. Smiling, she sat across from him. She liked having moments with just her and Grissom sometimes.

"You're in early," he noted as she sat down.

"Good morning to you too, Grissom."

"Sorry," he said, closing his eyes briefly, "good morning, Sara."

_That's better_, she thought. Her boss could be very strange sometimes, but, that was one of the many things she liked about him. Even though she didn't think about it as often as she used to, considering she had a boyfriend, there wasn't much she _didn't_ like about Grissom. His bright blue eyes, his salt-and-pepper colored curls, the tiny little dimple in his chin, the smile that made her melt…

"So, Sara," his voice brought her out of her daydreaming, "what brings you in early?"

"I wanted to finish my case before shift," She said.

"Did you?" He asked, she nodded. "Well done," he smiled.

_That smile…_

"Hey, guys!" Came the excited voice of Greg Sanders, the DNA tech.

"Hey, Greg." Sara replied, somewhat annoyed. It wasn't that she didn't like Greg, he just had a-bad-tendency to flirt with her. Considering he was well aware of her being with Hank, it bothered her sometimes.

"Have you seen the others?" Grissom asked as Greg began to make his special brand of coffee.

"I saw Catherine at her locker, no sign of Nick or Warrick." He answered, not taking his eyes off his precious coffee.

"Hey, guys." Catherine said as she entered the room. "Hey, Greg, mind making me a cup of that Blue Hawaiian?" She said as she smelled the coffee in the air.

"Sure. Want some, Sara? Grissom?"

"No thanks, Greg." Grissom said, pointing to the cup he already had.

"I'll take some," Sara said.

Smiling, Greg poured three cubs of coffee, and handed one to Catherine, the other Sara, and kept one for himself.

Sara took a sip of her coffee, not knowing it would be her last cup for a long, long time.

XX

Grissom's phone began to vibrate in his pocket. "Grissom," he answered. He talked for a few more moments, then hung up the phone, putting back in his pocket.

"Nick just called," Grissom said, "he's running late, said to go ahead and start without him."

"Sara, Cath, we have a car crash at a restaurant. I'll come along until something comes up. Warrick will meet us there later."

After making a quick trip to their lockers to grab their kits, they headed to their crime scene. It was total chaos. Sirens going off, people screaming in pain, firemen and paramedics scrambling around from person to person, Victims being wheeled out on stretchers . Sara could see Brass walking towards them, he was talking to someone on his cell phone. He quickly explained the situation, and began walking off again.

"What about the driver?" Catherine asked.

"None responsive," he said over his shoulder.

Sara's eyes followed him for a brief moment, then something caught her eye. Or, rather, a familiar voice got her attention, causing her to glance further over her shoulder. It was Hank. He was tending to someone, but, he wasn't in his paramedic uniform. She walked over to inspect.

"Hey Sara, typical Thursday," he said, looking back down at his patient. It was then she noticed the large, dark bruise forming on his wrist. "Hank," She said, "your wrist is broken."

He looked down at his hand. "Yeah…it is." He sounded as though he was in a zombie like state. "Larry, take over, will ya?" He said to the man next to him, before walking off for a brief second. Sara heard the screeching of the drivers door being forced open as she followed him.

"What happened?" She asked. "I was sitting at a table," he took a breath, suddenly very tired, "next thing I knew…"

"We gotta heart beat!" Called the firemen who was tending to the driver.

"Excuse me," he whispered, gently pushing Sara out of his way, rushing to the unconscious driver.

Time seemed to play in slow motion. Sara watched as Hank called for a stretcher, then backed off as the others tended to the unconscious women. He walked off, pulling one of his partners with him, asking him to bandage up his wrist. The sound of the ambulance taking off with the driver brought Sara back into reality, and she walked over to Hank.

"Mind if I take over?" She asked the man who was tending to Hank. He kindly stepped out of her way.

"You ok?" She asked, sounding as though she was talking to a child who lost his favorite toy.

"Yeah… I didn't think I'd see you tonight."

"So that's what this is about," she teased.

He laughed lightly, looking down at his hand. "Thanks," he suddenly said.

"Any time." She looked into his eyes.

"Listen, I gotta get over to the hospital, and I'm sure you've gotta get back to work."

"Yeah," she said, stretching the word out, "but, will you call me, if you need anything? My cell will be on. Anything."

With that, they stood, and went their separate ways. He went to check on the victims, while she went to find out what caused them to become victims.

XX

A few hours later, Sara found herself at the hospital, talking to the driver's; who she now knew as Diane Lambert, grandson, Corey. It turned out the his grandmother hated Las Vegas, and that he had no idea what she was doing here. Just as he began to speak again, she heard that familiar voice again. Looking up, she saw Hank, bending down on one knee, talking to a woman in a wheelchair.

"Can you excuse me for a second?" She asked, but before he could answer, she was already walking away.

"Hey!" She called, just as the woman in the wheelchair was rolled off.

"Hey," he smiled back.

"And the EMT of the Year Award goes to-"

"Not me," he cut her off, "death toll's not three, could climb to four." He looked down the hallway, "Elaine," he paused, "the girl in the wheelchair, _she's _one of the lucky ones."

"You were _amazing." _Sara said, looking into his eyes.

"_Eight years _in the rig, first time I've actually been a _part _of the scene…" He waved his broken hand in a circle motion around his head, "I can't… Stop it going though my head."

"Yeah… You never know when your life is gonna change."

"Listen, I… I gotta get out of here." He said, holing her hand in his.

"You need a lift?"

"No… I drove." He let go of her hand, and started walking down the hall.

"Hank," She called, he turned and looked at her.

_Be careful? You did a great job? I love you? _She couldn't think of the right thing to say, nothing _seemed like _the right thing to say, "I'm really glad you're okay." She finally said. He simply smiled, giving her his thanks, and continued down the hall.

She watched him walk away, and couldn't help but think of how close she came to losing him. It sent shivers down her spine thinking that he was only a few seats away from death. The thought of losing him was to much for her, even though, in only a matter of hours, that wouldn't matter to her anymore. As she watched him turn the corner, something she'd said to him flashed in her mind.

"_You never know when you're life is gonna change"_

XX

Sighing, Sara exited the morgue. The only thing that the autopsy helped with was COD. Her head had impacted with the steering wheel, due to the absence of airbags, and busted a major artery. Doc. Robbins was unable to find any physiological explanation for the crash. And, unfortunately, Sara and the others didn't have a forensic one, either.

After taking off her coat, she headed to the lab. She took a seat, and downloaded the memory from the victims GPS. Since she wasn't local, and that she hated the place, Sara wondered if she could have possibly gotten lost. Shortly after the download was complete, Greg strutted in.

"Hey, I hear you're workin' on Hank's case." He teased.

"I believe it's _my _case." She replied, not taking her eyes off the computer screen.

"Ah, territorial." He said, leaning on the table from his elbows down, shaking his head "you know, guys down like that."

"You're crowding me, Greg." Her patients thinning.

"Well, I have some information that could bring us even _closer._"

She gave him an annoyed look. "But you first." He straightened himself and backed away a few steps. "What are we lookin' at?" He asked, pointing at the screen.

Sara explained her theory to Greg, about the possibility of the victim getting lost, and she highlighted the roads the victim took to Vegas. "Well, did she?" He asked.

"Diane Lambert, lives in Laughlin." She stood, and walked over to the larger screen.

"She took 95 north," she used her finger to trace over the line, "to Summerlin Parkway."

"Then she took Parkway to Rampart," she continued tracing, "made a left on Main Street, and headed straight to Meadows Lane. 16 north Meadows Lane."

"That's where she was going, and that's where she ended up." She finished.

"So, does that thing tell you _why_?" Greg said, cocking his head slightly.

"What do you have, Greg?"

"Well maybe she had the munchies!" He chuckled, unable to contain his amusement. "Tox screen came back, Mrs. Lambert tested positive for _cannabis sativa."_

"Grass!" Sara exclaimed.

"_Grass!_" Greg laughed, "so seventies, man!"

Sara just stared at him, completely shocked.

"The sticky green, the dank, the…" he named off several different, childish names for it, pausing only to take a breath, "happy stick, whacky tobacc-y…"

"Whoa, whoa, wait, wait, wait, _wait! _Grandma was _high?_" Sara gasped.

"Yeah!"

"Grandma was _high_…"

Greg put two fingers to his mouth, sucking in air as if smoking a cigarette, "as a kite."

XX

Sara raced down to the morgue, only to be disappointed. She was hoping to find out that Diane Lambert had been effected by the THC, but, she was only using it for her glaucoma. Sara asked if her vision could have been effected by the glaucoma itself, but Robbins simply stated that it didn't effect her driving. Once again without answers, Sara left the morgue.

XX

She entered the lab that she'd previously been in with Greg, only to find Catherine using the large touch screen.

"Hello," she greeted, slightly confused.

"Oh, hey," Catherine greeted back, glancing over her shoulder. "So, I got photos, of the restaurant patrons from the DMV database," She said as she poked each table, and picture of one of the people in the restaurant at the time would pop up, along with there name, "and impute the information per the restaurant seating chart and the police report." he voice slowed as she tapped on one table, and Hank's picture popped up. She clicked in the one in front of him, and a woman named Elaine Alcott came into view on the screen.

"Who's Elaine Alcott?" Catherine asked.

"Who?" Sara asked, squinting her eyes. Where had she heard that name before?

"Umm, well, she was seated with Hank. I just thought maybe that…" He voice got lower and lower as Sara seemed to become even more confused. Catherine immediately new what was going on, but said nothing. She didn't want to worry Sara if this turned out to be nothing.

"Anyway, um, apparently…"

Sara wasn't even listening. She looked at the photos of Hank and Elaine again, then her mind went back to the hospital.

"_And the EMT of the Year Award goes to-"_

"_Not me," he cut her off, "death toll's not three, could climb to four." He looked down the hallway, "Elaine," he paused, "the girl in the wheelchair, _she's_ one of the lucky ones."_

"They must be friends, I saw him with her at the hospital." She said, nodding, not even aware that Catherine had been talking. That _had _to be the reason they were eating together…right?

"Ok.." Catherine didn't quite believe her, but she chose not to press it. "Ok, so, we've got thirty six people in the restaurant. Twelve worked for Silmont Health Care, a block away. Another ten were from the brokerage firm across the street. A couple regulars, out of towners, and the restaurant employees."

"You know how long it takes to get in touch with anyone in the Transportation Safety Bureau?" Asked Warrick Brown as he entered the room, "it's way out of hand. Diane Lambert, ran the light." He handed the folder he was carrying to Catherine.

"Wow, she sped through that intersection. Fifty two miles-per-hour!" Catherine said.

"That's more than twice the speed limit." Sara pointed out.

"Well, the tread marks tell us that her breaks did work, so it must have been something else that malfunctioned, causing it to accelerate."

"Well, the gas peddle could've gotten stuck, or, the throttle plate could've jammed." Sara suggested.

"There's only one way to find out." Catherine smiled.

"I'm on it." Sara said.

XX

Checking over the car had been a waste of time. The gas peddle was fine, and so was the throttle plate, and anything else that could have gone wrong. After she'd finished, Warrick came in and told her what he'd discovered, that the intersection caught four times as many traffic violations than any other one in Vegas. This, Sara thought, needed to be investigated.

As it turned out, the building had mirrored glass; which according to Warrick, let in the light, but kept out the glare. Could the glare had caused the crash? Unfortunately, after doing the math, they realized that the sun was well behind the trees that surrounded the intersection. Again, the were left with nothing.

For what seemed like the hundredth time, Sara returned back to the lab. Again Catherine was there. She explained that, using computer software, she was going sixty miles-per-hour by the time she hit the news paper dispenser that sat outside the restaurant.

"She _accelerated_ into the building!" Catherine said.

An idea suddenly came into Sara's mind and, without so much as a goodbye to Catherine, she went to the morgue.Only this time. She came back with answers.

Diane Lamberts acetylcholine levels were low, and her epinephrine levels were high. Which, Sara knew, were hormones caused by stress. This suggested that Diane came into Vegas, and was very stressed about something. Perhaps planning on using her car as some sort of weapon that might end up hurting or even killing her.

"Kamikaze granny," Robbins had smiled after Sara explained how Diane's blood was similar to the kamikaze pilots of World War II.

But one question still remained. Why would she do this?

XX

"If the crash was intentional, I'm thinking that the restaurant was the target or someone inside was." Explained Sara as she and Catherine walked down the halls of the lab.

After pulling up the seating chart on the large screen, they walked over and quickly discovered something that three of the five people sitting in the front window worked at Silmont Health Care. One of them was Elaine, Hank's _friend. _

"Maybe I should go talk to her." Sara said.

"Yeah.." Catherine agreed, still looking up at the screen, "maybe you should.". With that, Sara left the lab. Immediately, Catherine felt bad for letting Sara go talk to Elaine. She wasn't sure if Sara knew it, but, she was well aware that Sara would probable discover something that didn't pertain to their investigation.

XX

"I'm sorry, I don't recognize her." Said the raspy, sore sounding voice of Elaine Alcott, who had a large white brace strapped around her neck.

"Well, um, could she be one of you policy holders?" Sara asked.

"It's possible, I oversee hundreds of members' accounts, I could check my list." Elaine replied as she got up from the table she was sitting at. "That'd be great." Sara thanked her.

"I wish I had some more time off," Elaine sighed, "but with Tom Crandle gone and with half of my department in the hospital, I'm back at the office tomorrow." She said as they sat down and pulled up her laptop.

As Elaine began typing, Sara's eyes wondered around briefly, but they landed on a single photo in front of her. It showed Elaine, on a beach, with a man behind her, holding some sort of fancy drink in his hand. That man looked very familiar. That man… was Hank. _No, _Sara couldn't believe her eyes, she picked up the photo for a closer look. No doubt about it. It was Hank.

"My boyfriend," Elaine smiled when she noticed, "saved up my miles and took him to Hawaii last year. He's taking me to Tahiti in a few weeks. I can't wait!" she added as Sara put the picture down, her heart sinking and a lump forming in her throat and tears stinging in her eyes.

"Mrs. Lambert isn't on my list," Elaine said. Sara barely heard her, finding it hard to control her emotions. "But if you want, I can go on the company database-"

"Thank you, u-um," Sara said, her voice cracking, "I-I have to…get back to the lab. Um, maybe you can call me." Her voice was almost a whisper now as she handed Elaine her number.

"O-okay," Elaine said, looking from Sara to the paper, then back to Sara.

Sara had never felt so stupid. How could she have not known? She was a CSI! She was supposed to notice things like this! _How could I not have seen this? _She thought to herself as she shut her car door. She waited until she was out of the driveway before allowing herself to cry. She thought he really loved her. She'd thought wrong.

XX

By the time she arrived back at the lab, she'd stopped crying, but her face was pink and wet and her eyes were red and puffy, and her stomach was felt like it was turned in knots. She wiped her face with her sleeve, and rubbed her eyes, stinging them a little. She took a deep breath, and got out of the car, hoping that no one would her sad features in the dim, pale blue halls of the lab.

XX

"Hey," she said to Catherine, faking a smile.

"Hey," Catherine greeted, a little surprised by Sara's silence. She watched her younger colleague sit beside her, waiting for an update that would never come; without her asking for it, at least. After a few moments of silence, she was a little annoyed. "So," she began, "how did it go with Elaine Alcott?"

"She didn't have anything to add to the investigation." Sara said sadly, not looking up from her folder.

Her annoyance melted into confusion. Sara was gone for nearly two in a half hours, and she'd come back with nothing? That wasn't the Sara Sidle she knew. She had a feeling this had something to do with Hank, but before she could ask, Brass walked in.

"Here are the phone records from the driver of the vehicle that you asked for." He handed the folder he'd been carrying to Sara. "You know, there may be something to that 'kamikaze grandma' theory of yours." Sara flipped the page in the folder, "last week, Diane Lambert closed out her bank accounts, paid off her credit cards, and updated her will."

"Well, that's certainly more evidence to suggest that her actions were intentional." Catherine added.

"There's only one Vegas number on this statement," Sara finally said, "and on the previous statement… there's gotta be at least eighty calls to the same number."

"Dial the number,"

Sara fished her cell phone out of her pocket and dialed the number. "Silmont Health Care, how can I direct your call?" Asked an operator. Sara looked over at Brass and Catherine, "what's your address?" She asked.

"16 South Meadows Lane."

"Thank you," Sara said as she hung up. The restaurant had been at 16 North Meadows. No way that was a coincidence. But, why did Diane Lambert feel so angry at the health company?

XX

As it turned out, Diane Lambert truly was a 'kamikaze granny'. She'd targeted the company because they weren't treating her for her spreading cancer. She didn't care about dying because of her insurance policy that would help her grandson pay for college. Unfortunately, because her death was ruled a suicide, her grandson wouldn't get the money.

As Sara and Catherine headed out of PD, Hank came into view. Just the sight of him made Sara want to scream. But that would have to wait.

"I'll meet you at the car," Catherine said, thinking to herself _I'm glad I'm not him._

"I…called the lab. They said you were here." He said, stepping a little closer. "I hear you met Elaine." He stared at her, a look of fear on his face.

"Yeah, she's…really somthin'." Sara said sadly, looking down. She looked up at him, "I didn't tell her about us if that's what you were wondering." She added, noticing the instant relief wash over him.

He met her eyes again, "I'm really sorry Sara." She knew he wasn't. She felt the sting of tears in her eyes as she said, "yeah…me too."

"I don't know what else to say."

_Are you serious? _"I'll see ya around."

She walked out of the PD, her shoulders drooping as low possible with her hands mashed into her coat pockets. Her lower lip poked out slightly, mimicking a sad child. She was trying her hardest not to cry. _Not here._ She opened the car door and sat down, not looking or greeting Catherine, who was looking directly at her. She wished she could just disappear.

"Got plans?" Catherine asked after a while.

_Not anymore. _"Nope."

"Wanna get a beer?"

_What? _She finally looked over at Catherine, who instantly saw the tears she was holding back. She smiled a sad, understanding smile. She'd been there. She wanted to help.

"Drive." Sara said, feeling a little better.

Catherine pulled out of the parking lot, glancing at Sara every few seconds, waiting to see the tears fall down her face. They never came. "Any place special?" Catherine asked.

"Anywhere's fine."

If only Sara knew how much this one night out was going to change her life.

XX

"Do you wanna talk about it?"

"Isn't that why we're here?"

Catherine gave Sara a look across the table. "Sorry," Sara said, sipping her beer.

"Hey," Catherine said, "you're angry, you deserve to be."

"I don't know how I didn't see it." Sara admitted, "I mean, I always thought it would be easy, that it would never happen."

"Well, it's not. At least you didn't marry and have a kid with him."

Sara looked down at her beer, seeing how Catherine had brought up her own romantic mistakes with her ex Eddie. Both took a sip of their drinks when Catherine said, "believe it or not, Sara, you're lucky. This could've ended a lot worse."

"I know," Sara said, thinking of all the scenes she'd been called to that had started with situations similar to hers.

They drank a few more beers and talked for the next two hours. "I gotta go," Catherine said, getting up from the table. "Coming?" She asked when she noticed that Sara wasn't following.

"No thanks, I'll get a cab." Sara said, wanting a moment by herself.

"Ok…see you tomorrow."

Sara sat there for a few minutes, ordering another beer. She couldn't stop thinking of what might have happened if she hadn't found out about Elaine. As she took another sip of her drink, a familiar face caught her attention.

"Grissom?"

XX

**I know it's long for a prologue, but I hope you liked it, please review! (:**


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you to everyone who reviewed! I know it was a kind of boring start, but I hope this makes up for it. I only have 2 more weeks of school left, so I should have a lot more time to write! This chapter is where things get strange, I think you'll be surprised, but I hope you like it. Also, I edited the summary a little, if you haven't noticed already. This chapter is rated T for a fluffy scene. You have been warned!**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing, all mistakes are mine. Some lines are barrowed from/inspired by scenes from the episode 'Crash and Burn'.**

**Chapter 1:**

Sara sat there for a few minutes, ordering another beer. She couldn't stop thinking of what might have happened if she hadn't found out about Elaine. As she took another sip of her drink, a familiar face caught her attention.

"Grissom?"

Grissom turned at the sound of her voice, and quickly walked over to her table. "What are you doing here?" She asked.

"I, um…I heard about Hank." He admitted, giving her an understanding look.

"Oh," she looked down at her hands, avoiding eye contact.

"I just, wanted to, uh-" he paused when she looked back up at him. "I wanted to let you know that-" he met her eyes, and it was as if his voice was stuck in his throat. She looked like a little girl who'd just lost her puppy. He wanted nothing more than to hold her in his arms, let her know it would be okay, that he was their for her, that he loved her. _Whoa, _he thought, _not that last one. _It wasn't that he didn't love her, he loved her more than anything. The thing was, he'd practically ignored her since the day her found out that she'd been with Hank. The thought of Sara with another man killed him inside. He didn't think she'd believe him.

But there was something else he _wanted_ to say.

"Uh, Grissom?" Sara's voice brought him back to reality.

"I just wanted you to know that, you don't have to come in next shift. That's my day off, so…if you'd like, you could, um…" He rubbed his forehead, this was so much harder than he thought it would be. "What I'm trying to say is, you can come over and talk if you want."

Sara was taken aback. Did she hear him correctly? Did he just ask her to come to _his house? _

"I'd like that," she smiled. Grissom smiled back, and got up to leave.

"Wait!" Sara called, Grissom turned and faced her. "Why don't you stay? Shift's over." She pursed her lips, pointing to the extra seat by tilting her head. Smiling, Grissom walked over and sat down. "I'd like that," he smiled. God, she loved that smile.

XX

"So," Sara said after Grissom ordered a beer, "how'd you know I was here?"

"Catherine told me. She called and said that I should let you stay in tomorrow, I asked where you were. I wanted to make sure you were ok."

"Who'd you hear it from?"

He was quiet for a moment, and Sara instantly knew. "Greg?" She asked. He nodded, "I didn't tell you because didn't want to have to hire a new lab tech."

Sara laughed, she was already feeling a lot better. Maybe leaving Hank wasn't such a bad thing after all.

Time flew by, and so did the drinks. Before either of them knew it, it was dark outside, and both knew that they were too intoxicated to drive. Grissom called a cab and, without really thinking it through, told Sara to just stay at his place.

"Why?" She asked as the cabby pulled off.

"Your house is on the other side of town. It'd be cheaper this way. Besides, you were gonna come over tomorrow. I have a spare bedroom." He said, shrugging as though it was nothing. She shrugged too, not seeing any danger in it. She also hadn't remembered how many drinks either of them had had. At the time, she didn't think that it mattered.

The cab pulled into Grissom's driveway, he paid the driver, and he and Sara got out and headed up the stairs. He watched her struggle up the first few steps and, without thinking, took her hand in his. The sudden contact sent a spark through them.

They walked inside, their hands still intertwined, and locked eyes. That same spark went though them again. This time it was to hard to control. "Did you feel that?" Sara whispered, barely loud enough for him to hear. He answered her by giving her a gentle kiss on her lips. They remained that way until they needed to breathe. The feeling that they encountered was so strong, and so wonderful, neither knew what was happening, nor did they realize just how intoxicated they both were.

Grissom held her face in his hands, and once again she met his eyes. In that moment, all was lost.

He pulled her in for another kiss, this one more urgent than the last. She wrapped her arms around his neck, running her hands through his curls. He knew this was wrong. Something in the back of his mind kept telling him no, but the rest of him was screaming yes. Next thing they knew, they were in his bedroom, and his hands were sliding up the back of her shirt, unclipping her bra.

XX

Sara woke the next morning with her head pounding. At first, it made no sense. Then it all came back to her. The case, Elaine, leaving Hank, the bar, Grissom-

_Grissom!_

The last thing she remembered was Grissom's hands sliding up her back. But she also remembered the feeling they'd both shared when they held hands, and when they kissed. Did he? What if that had been caused by the alcohol? What if she'd just imagined that spark? Nervously, she slowly opened her eyes. The room was still a little dark, it was no later than seven. She went to prop herself up, but realized she couldn't. Opening her eyes a little wider, she noticed that she wasn't alone. Nor was she the only one awake.

Grissom's blue eyes started down at her, and it was then that she realized that one of her arms was wrapped around his bare chest, and that one of his was around her as well. She also became aware of the fact that they were both completely undressed. Her cheeks flushed red, and even though she couldn't remember, she knew what had happened during the night.

She was the first to break the silence. "Grissom…I'm so sorry." She looked down, her eyes closed, doing her best to hold in her tears.

XX

_Earlier that morning_

Grissom awoke with his left arm numb and his head pounding. Using his right hand, he rubbed his forehead, trying to stop the pain. He looked down at his left arm, and was taken aback. Sara Sidle was resting her head on his shoulder, and her arm was wrapped around him. Then it all came back, he remembered grabbing her on the stairs, kissing her, the spark, and everything that followed.

It had been everything he'd ever wanted since the day he'd met her. There was always something about her that drove him crazy. There was no way he was going to let her go now, not after everything that had happened.

He watched her sleep. He would brush hair away from her face when it fell. He did this for about thirty minutes, until she woke up. He watched as her confusion melted, and she became aware of everything around her. He was shocked with what she said next:

"Grissom…I'm so sorry."

XX

_Sorry? _"Sara," he held her face with his hand, and she met his eyes again. God he loved those eyes. "Don't apologize. Last night-"

"I know, was a mistake." She said, he saw a single tear slid down her face. "I had to much to drink, I should have just gone to my own house. God, Grissom, I'm so sorry." She choked out a sob.

"No! No, Sara, listen to me, please." He gently pulled her face up, forcing her to look at him. "Last night made me realize so many things. When we kissed, I realized just how special our bond is. That we share a strong connection. I've never felt this with anyone before, Sara." He said, not breaking eye contact with her.

Sara was at a loss of words. That was _not _what she had expected. She expected him to freak, to pretend that nothing had happened. That he hadn't remembered the feeling that went though them. This was the complete opposite. All she could do was stare at him.

"Sara, please, say something."

"That's the best thing anyone has ever said to me," she said, her lower lip quivering. He smiled at her. Nothing could sum up how happy she was. She leaned forward, wrapped her arm around his neck, and kissed him. At first, his eyes became wide with shock, but after a moment, they closed, and he kissed her back. That same, wonderful feeling went through them again. _So that wasn't because of the alcohol, _Sara thought. When they finally broke apart for air, they met each others eyes.

"What do we do now?" Sara asked, tracing her hand down the side of his face.

"I'm not letting you go, Sara. Not now. Not after this."

She smiled, her bottom lip quivering again. "Thank you," she managed, resting her head on his chest.

"But, what about work? What about the others?" She asked again, not looking up at him.

"I…I guess we'll just, have to keep it a secret."

"Can we pull it off?"

"I think we can. Either way, we're professionals, Sara, I think we can be in a relationship and work together."

_In a relationship, _those words sent chills through her. "After all," he said, smiling, "we managed it in San Francisco."

"We had coffee a few times, Gris, not…well, this."

He was silent.

"Oh, sorry, Grissom. That came out wrong."

"Sara, it's ok. This is going to take some getting used to, but, I think we'll make it."

With that, they lied there, holing each other. It had all happened so fast, and in such a strange way. But all that mattered now was that they were finally happy, finally together. Things were beginning to look brighter for Sara.

XX

It was now a little past noon, and Sara had already showered (alone), gone home, changed cloths, and returned to Grissom's. They planned on spending the rest of the day together, relaxing, when Grissom's phone rang.

"It's Catherine." Grissom said sadly.

"Answer it."

"But-"

"Grissom, it's ok, I'll be fine." She smiled.

"Grissom," he answered, watching Sara walk into another room.

"_Hey, Gris, it's Catherine. I was just calling to ask if you know if Sara stayed home. She didn't come in today."_

"Oh," Grissom said, rather surprised. "Yeah, I talked to her yesterday, she said she wanted a day to herself, to kind of…deal with everything."

"_Poor girl," _Catherine sighed through the phone, _"well, thanks Grissom. Do you know if she's coming in next shift?"_

"She said she would."

"_Good. Well, bye, Gil."_

"Oh, Cath, wait a sec."

"_What?"_

"Do the guys know about what happened?"

"_Yeah._" Catherine said, a little confused.

"Tell them to be…light, on the subject. Its still a little hard for her." Grissom said, finding it hard to contain his laughter.

"_Oh, gosh. I feel bad for her. I've gotta go, Gil, bye."_

"Bye," he hung up, and chuckled to himself.

"What's so funny?" Sara asked, entering the room again.

He looked up at her, and stopped chuckling long enough to talk. "Let's just say that, when you head in for work, pretend to be upset."

Not getting it, she gave him a confused look.

"I told Cath that you were, uh, having trouble with the break up."

"Ooh," she smiled, giggling to herself at his humor. "So, they didn't want you to come in?" She asked.

"No, Cath just wanted too know if you stayed _home_." He used his fingers as quotations as he said the word 'home'. Sara walked over and lied down on the couch with him, her back leaning on him. After a few hours of watching TV, they dozed off. It was six o'clock when they woke up.

"I need to get home." Sara said, stretching her arms out.

"Why? Shift doesn't start for three more hours."

"I know, but I need to get ready. I don't want my boss to get mad." She teased.

He smiled, "fine, see you later."

XX

Sara nervously walked to her locker. She knew what Grissom had said was right, but it was going to be a little different. She was also nervous because of the looks she was getting as she walked down the halls. Apparently, they all knew about Hank.

Sara turned into the locker room, where she found Nick. She stopped immediately, she stopped, he looked dead at her.

"Hey," he said kindly, she offered him a sad smile. She walked over to her locker, and began getting her things.

"Are you alright, Sar?" He asked.

_Act sad. _"Yeah," she said sadly, "Cath says it's good that I found out."

"It is, this could've ended a lot worse."

"I know. I'll um, see you later, okay?"

"Okay," he smiled sadly, his heart went out to Sara. She was like a little sister to him.

Sara entered the break room, where Catherine and Warrick sat. She smiled a sad smile and sat down next to them. "Want some coffee, Sara?" Warrick asked.

"No thanks," she sighed, shaking her head.

"How about some tea?" Catherine asked.

"I'm fine, you guys. Really."

Before they could protest, Grissom and Nick walked in, and Grissom immediately started handing out assignments.

"Cath, Warrick, DB at the Rampart. Old man found dead in one of the bathrooms." He handed her the slip, and they exited the room.

"Nick, Sara, you're with me. There was a break in in a rich neighborhood. The owner of the house was shot, she's at the hospital with critical wounds. Suspect ran off with about two thousand dollars worth of stolen items."

"Who's the home owner?" Nick asked.

"Shelby Norton, forty five. Shot in the leg. She's lost a lot of blood."

"Is she expected to live?" Sara asked.

"I don't know. But someone needs to go to the hospital and get her cloths."

There was an awkward silence. The three of them both knew what; more like who, might be at the hospital: Hank.

"I'll go," Nick said at last, giving Sara an understanding look and a pat on the shoulder. Even though she wasn't as upset about Hank, it would still be hard to see him and focus on the case. How would she be if she didn't have Grissom? Just the thought of it made her heart sink.

"Hey, are you okay?" Grissom asked, seeing that she was obviously thinking about something that upset her.

"I'm fine, it's just-" she paused, looking around to see if anyone was watching. Once she was certain that no one was, she continued, "let's just say, that, this would be a lot harder if I didn't have you."

XX

The case looked like it would be a slam dunk; as Warrick would often say. They found multiple fingerprints that didn't match the home owners'. In addition to that, it looked like the victim was going to live. The doctor had called the day after the break in, and gave them the bullet. Even better for them, it matched another bullet that was used in another robbery, but the case was unsolved. Same fingerprints, too. They needed to talk to the victim, to possibly get a description, and Sara was on her way to do just that.

"Are you sure you want to go there, Sara?" Nick asked nervously, knowing that Hank could be their.

"Nick, I can't just hide from him. Besides, it's been nearly a week, I'll be fine." She assured him, walking out of the break room.

"Brass will meet you there," Grissom called after her. Nick just shrugged, there was no stopping her. Even so, Sara still wondered what might happen if he was there. _Nothing, _she thought, getting into her car, _just focus on the case, and everything will be fine._

Thankfully, their was no sign of him once she arrived. Even so, she kept her eyes peeled until she reached the victims room.

"Hey, Sara, there you are." Called Brass, who was running to catch up with her.

"Hey Brass, you ready?" He nodded. "Okay," she sighed, getting a statement was sometimes hard for the victims, she hoped it wouldn't be so for this one.

"Ms. Norton?" She asked, knocking on the door.

"Come in, and please, call me Shelby. 'Mr. Norton' makes me feel old." She smiled.

"Ok then, Shelby. I'm Sara Sidle, I'm from the Crime Lab, and this is Jim Brass from LVPD, we'd like to get a statement about what happened a few nights ago. Do you think you can do that for us?"

"Oh, yes. Anything to catch the bastard."

"Ok, what do you remember first?" Brass asked, flipping open his note pad.

"Well, I was watching TV in my bedroom, when I heard a loud crash coming from the dining room," she began, "I went to see what was going on, and a man was going through some of my jewelry. I screamed at him to stop, but he didn't."

"Did you get a look at his face?" Sara asked. Shelby nodded. "Do you think you could describe him?"

"Oh, definitely." Shelby said, nodding vigorously.

"We'll take care of that once we finish the statement. So, what happened next?" Brass asked.

"He looked up at me, and just stood there, like a deer in the middle of a road. I ran for a phone, but he shot me, grabbed my jewelry and took off. Next thing I remember is the paramedics scraping me off the floor."

"That was good, Ms-" he cleared his through, an effort to cover up his mistake, "Shelby. That was very good. Now if you could just wait while I call in a sketch artist, and we'll get that description." Brass smiled, walking out of the room as he pulled out his cell phone.

Once the artist arrived, Shelby gave a rather strong description of the man who shot her. After they thanked her, they headed back to PD to put the picture on the air.

"The doctor says I'm going to be released in about five days, why don't you two come by? I make great blueberry muffins!"

"Thank you, Shelby, but, we're pretty busy." Brass said.

"Dang, well, I hope I'm helping you catch the bastard. Will you let me know when you catch him?"

"Yes, we will."

XX

"So, how'd it go at the hospital?" Grissom asked as Sara walked in the break room.

"Pretty good, actually," Sara said, pleased with the results she had, "we got a description of the guy, we should have the guy in custody very soon."

If only fate would have it that way.

_One week later_

"I don't believe this." Nick said, fuming as he put his cell phone in his pocket.

"What?" Sara asked, confused.

"That was Grissom. Guess who's body was discovered in a trash can?"

Sara's hear sank. "Shelby Norton's." She said, more of a statement than a question.

Nick nodded, "lets go, Grissom said there's a lot of press out there."

Sara rose from her chair, shoulders drooping as she walked to get her kit.

"Are you okay?" Nick asked as they walked out the door.

"Yeah, I'm fine." She lied.

He just gave her a look. Sara's entire apartment could explode, and she'd still say that she was 'fine'. He knew this was going to be a little hard for her, considering she'd gotten to know the victim a little.

The night seemed to go by in a flash. They collected and processed the evidence; from the trash can and body, got statements from witnesses, and were left with the man's description being the only way to identify the poor woman's killer.

Four more days past, and nothing came up. It was beginning to look like they'd never get the guy, when:

"Hey, Sara!" Nick called, running down the lab's hallways to catch up with her.

"Whoa, Nick, where's the fire?"

"In the interrogation room at PD. Brass just called, they've got him. He confessed to everything"

Sara's eyes could have popped out of her head. "Really? Just like that?" She gasped.

"Once Brass laid out the evidence, the guy broke down." He put a hand on her shoulder, "we've got em' Sara."

XX

"Hey, Sara, why don't you come over to my place tonight?" Grissom whispered as Sara sat in the chair in front of his desk, "we haven't spent much time together since this case started."

"I'd like that," Sara smiled.

XX

"It's cases that end like this that keep me doing this," Sara said, slurping a fork full of spaghetti that Grissom had made into her mouth, "I just wish we could have gotten him sooner."

"It happens sometimes, Sara, people do stupid things."

"Well, that's one idiot off the streets." She sighed. She looked down at her plate, and twirled her fork in her spaghetti.

"Sara?" Grissom asked, "are you sure you're okay?"

"No," she admitted, "I mean, for some reason, I feel like it's…kind of _my _fault. I know it's not, but, if we'd found him the first time, then Shelby Norton would still be alive."

"Sara, you can't keep thinking that. He didn't have a record, and no one at the scene saw him, other than the victim. Sometimes there's just nothing you can do."

"I know. But-"

"Sara," Grissom stopped her, his tone a little more harsh, "you can't blame yourself for this. You're part of one of the best labs in the country. If there was something at the first scene that would have lead us to the killer, we would have found it the first time. You're a great CSI, Sara, you can't let these things get to you."

She smiled at him. Even if they'd only been together for three weeks, he always knew what to say to make her feel better. After washing the dishes, Sara went to leave, but as she walked to the door, her stomach felt queasy for a moment. Momentarily confused, she stopped, and sat down on the couch.

"You okay?" Grissom asked, walking over.

"Yeah, this is the most I've eaten all day. I don't think my stomach took it very well."

"You want me to get you something?"

"No, thanks, I need to get home." She rose to leave, "thank you for the dinner, Grissom." she kissed him on the cheek, and hurried out the door.

_That was strange, _she thought, pulling out of Grissom's driveway. She'd gone much longer without food before, and that had never happened. _Probably just a stomach virus._

Again, if only fate would have it.

XX

Another week past, and Sara wasn't feeling any better. She was feeling worse, actually. She didn't think anyone had noticed. But by the next week, the one person she didn't want to, did.

"Sara, are you feeling okay?" Grissom asked after everyone had left the break room, "you look a little pale."

"I'm fine, Griss. It's just a stomach virus. And being called in on my day off didn't help much, either."

He gave her a look. "Fine. But if you're not feeling better by next week," he looked around to see if anyone was listening, "I'm making you an appointment."

"Okay, fine, _Dr. _Grissom. Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to go meet Nick and Warrick." She teased, taking her assignment slip and walking out the door.

She met up with them in the parking lot, and headed out. They met up with Det. O'Riley, a rather chubby detective, who described the scene to them. As they ducked under that tape, though, Sara's stomach got that nauseous feeling again.

"I hope you brought extra supplies," O'Riley said.

"Why's that?" Sara asked.

"'Cause you're gonna be here a while." O'Riley pulled up the garage door. At the same time, their jaws dropped. It was like walking into a battle field. There were bullet holes everywhere, with beams of light shining through them. On the floor, lied hundreds of cartridge casings. But in the middle of that, lied a dead boy.

"Looks like a war zone." Nick commented.

Feeling her stomach becoming more unsettled, she let out a heavy sigh as they walked in.

"We got an ID on the body?" Warrick asked as they approached.

"No cash, no ID, just a driver's permit."

"Driver's permit? What is he, sixteen?" Sara asked, shocked.

"Fifteen in a half," O'Riley corrected.

"Tell the coroner to watch his step, there's casings and blood everywhere." Warrick warned. "Divide and conquer? Inside or outside?"

"Outside perimeter." Sara said quickly, feeling sick. What the heck was wrong with her? She immediately began processing once she was outside, hoping the fresh air and concentration would distract her from her upset stomach. She photographed tire treads and footprints, and after going onto the roof, discovered a long bamboo stick, with strange marks going down it.

"Hey guys," she called, walking back in, "what do you make of this piece of bamboo? I found it on the roof."

"Bag it," Nick joked.

"That's funny, very funny." Had she not felt so sick it might have really _been_ funny. "Did you check out the hole in the roof?" She asked, looking up at the square hole.

"You find anything else up there?" Nick asked. "No," her voice lowered as her vision became a little blurry. She wasn't even aware of Warrick talking until he was nearly finished.

"…what's you're count?" She heard him ask Nick.

"One hundred and nine,"

She knew they were talking, but all she could think of was getting out of their, and getting her stomach to calm down.

"What in the hell went on in here?" She finally spoke, looking at the hole covered wall. Suddenly, it felt as though her stomach had flipped. _Oh, shit, _she thought. She needed to get outside. _Now._

Without saying a word, Sara walked out the door, one hand on her stomach. Feeling the sting of bile rising in her throat, her pace quickened into a light job. She needed to get as far away from the crime scene as she could.

She knew Nick had called for her, but she couldn't answer him. When she felt like she was far enough away, she felt light headed, and had to hold on to the fence with one arm for support. _Thank God they officers left, _she thought.

"Sara? You okay?" She heard Nick ask, his voice not far behind her. She knew Warrick wasn't far behind him. "Sara?" He asked again, placing a hand on her back.

"I think I'm gonna be sick," She half whispered, half choked as she put her other hand on one of her knees.

"What?"

"I think-" she couldn't even finish her sentence, quickly looking away, she vomited.

XX

**Yeah, this was a crazy chapter. Probably not what most of you were expecting, but I hope you liked it. I to put more into this chapter, but it was getting to long. **

**Please review, but if you don't like it, don't be mean.**


	3. Chapter 3

**I know some of you were a little disappointed about the last chapters' ending, and might not like where this story is going, but I hope that your mind changes as you read. But there were some reviews that made me smile, and I thank you all who posted those.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing, all mistakes are mine. Some lines are barrowed from/inspired by scenes from the episode "A Night At The Movies" I also meant to add that in the last chapter, instead of "Crash and Burn".**

**Chapter 3:**

Momentarily shocked, Nick jumped back. He remembered her saying she didn't feel well earlier, but he didn't realize it was this bad.

The sound of Warrick's feet hitting the ground behind him brought him back, and he went to Sara's side, holding her hair out of her face. Warrick came in front of them, mouthing, "what happened?". Nick shrugged. He honestly didn't know. She'd seemed fine before…

Sara had never been so embarrassed. This beat the Tom Haviland case by a hundred miles. Nick had _sort of _seen her get sick before; when she'd first joined the team about two years earlier, but this was different. That had lasted only about five seconds, this was lasting close to a full minute.

"I-I-'m, I'm sorry," she said eventually, her voice tired and raspy. Her cheeks flushed bright red.

"Don't be," Nick said, pulling a tissue out of his pocket and handing it to her. She wiped her mouth, and stuffed the tissue in her pocket to throw away later.

"I don't know what happened," she confessed, her hand still gripping the fence, "I just got dizzy and light headed all of a sudden,"

"Did you…possibly eat something bad?" Nick asked, immediately wishing he'd chosen better words.

"I don't know," she didn't even think about what he'd said, she just wanted to sit down, and take a mint.

Nick wrapped his arm around her shoulders, straightening her. "C'mon," he said, pulling her towards him, "let's get you home, you need to rest."

"No!" She protested, pulling away slightly, "I'm okay, Nick, really. Just let me finish this case. Then, I _promise_ I'll take a day off."

"Fine," Warrick butted in, walking over, "but you still need to rest. Go sit in the car until we're done."

Seeing that that was the best offer she'd get, Sara allowed Nick to walk her over to the car. Once alone, she leaned back into her chair, closing her eyes. It wasn't long before she dosed off, her head titling to the side. She woke to Nick shutting his door.

"Sorry," he said, realizing he'd disturbed her.

"How long was I out?"

"Not long, twenty minutes, maybe."

Looking out the window, she saw Warrick pulling out in the other car. "Go back to sleep, Sara," Nick said from the driver's seat as he fallowed Warrick, "it'll be about an hour until we get back to the lab."

With that, Sara drifted into sleep once more.

XX

Grissom's phone vibrated in his pocket.

"Grissom," he answered.

"_Hey, Griss, it's Warrick, I think you should give Sara a day off tomorrow."_

"What?" Grissom asked, instantly worried, "why? Is she okay?"

"_She's fine, she just got sick at our crime scene about twenty minutes ago. She doesn't look like she has anything serious, but I think she should rest."_

"Okay," Grissom sighed, only slightly relieved, "I'll tell her next time I see her. Thank for letting me know, Warrick."

"_No problem," _he heard Warrick hang up.

Slipping his phone back into his pocket, and stepped out of the car to join Catherine.

"Who was that on the phone?" She asked, slowing her pace so he could catch up.

"Warrick," he replied simply, knowing Sara wouldn't be happy with everyone knowing about her incident.

"What did he want?"

Grissom knocked on the door before replying, hoping that the owner would answer before he had to explain more. "Nothing very important."

Before Catherine could respond, the door opened, much to Grissom's relief.

XX

Once they made it back to the lab, Sara had quickly made her way to the Layout room, her bamboo stick in hand. She received some confused and humorous looks on the way, which didn't help her mood much. Before she started working, she put up crime scene tape in the entrance, at a height to where people would have to duck before entering.

"Is this where the limbo party is?" She heard Warrick ask as she finished printing, "can I come in?" He asked, ducking under the tape.

"Yeah," she laughed, "Sorry, I…don't want everyone in here."

"Well, I got your one to ones," he said, pulling out her photos of the tire treads, "the tire treads-there's nothing specific here."

"Bummer,"

"But the shoe prints you took, they look interesting. It looks like five suspects walked in, and four ran out." He explained, laying out pictures of the shoe prints out on the table.

"Four guilty people out there somewhere." Sara added.

"Do doubt. How's it coming with you 'big bamboo' here?"

"Well, I have Black Lung from all the powder and not a single print. Nothing, nada." She sighed.

"Test for GSR? The place was riddled with bullets. It wouldn't hurt."

"Wouldn't hurt," Sara agreed.

It might not hurt, but it wouldn't help them either. There was no GSR on the bamboo pole. So, Sara decided to try going to Hodges. Maybe he could find something.

XX

"You're joking, right?" Hodges said as Sara walked up to his lab, bamboo stick in hand.

"Do I _look_ like I'm joking, Hodges?" Sara hissed.

"Whoa now!" He held up his hands in a terrified motion, "just kidin', Sara."

"I'm tired of 'kidin' Hodges. Now, help me with this." She said as she entered. Hodges maneuvered his way to the other end of the pole, and helped Sara set it under the microscope.

After a few moments of looking at it, his head popped up. "Spiral gouges," he said, sounding surprised, "check it out."

Sara walked over and looked into the microscope. Sure enough, there were black, spiral little marks from tip to tip of the pole.

"What do you think caused these marks?" She asked.

"Give me more time, I'm not a miracle worker." Hodges said in his usual, rude, and quite annoying tone.

"Well, that obvious, Hodges. If you were a miracle worker you wouldn't be rude." She shot back.

"I wasn't being _rude,_ I was being curt. _Rude _would be, 'when I know, you'll know.'"

"Friends?" He added after a moment.

"No," Sara smirked just as Warrick walked in behind her.

"Hodges, how's it comin' with that glass?" He asked. Hodges pointed to one of the other microscopes. "It looks like there's some kind of coating on it." He noted, looking up at Hodges. After Hodges explained what the coating was, Sara instantly knew what type glass they had.

"Camera lends."

"You think someone has this murder on tape?" Warrick asked after a moment.

"Maybe…Have you processed the brother's van yet?" Sara asked. Warrick shook his head.

"No.." Warrick said, realizing what she meant.

"Let me know what you find." Sara said as he walked toward the garage.

XX

While Warrick, Nick, and O'Riley were interviewing the victims older brother, Sara was busy loading the bullet information into the computer. After what seemed like forever, she was on the last bullet.

"Sorry I'm late," Warrick said as he entered, taking a seat beside her, "what bullet are you on?"

"One hundred and nine, finally. Height, distance, angle." She said tiredly. "This had been a very laborious shift." She sighed after typing in the information, looking up at him. He gave her a sad smile, knowing that she wasn't just talking about the bullets.

"Are you in the mood for a light show?" She asked after a pause.

"Yeah, hook it up." He smiled, nodding toward the computer.

Sara pressed a few keys, and all of the red lights that symbolized a specific bullet went flying across the screen, heading to the point that they were fired from. They all lined up in the center of the room, forming a pole like object, according to Warrick.

"Or a bamboo stick." Sara noted.

This was incredibly frustrating for them. This case had been so strange, they couldn't quite wrap their heads around it.

"Is this the end of the road?" Warrick asked.

"Forensically, yes."

XX

Sara, feeling very thirsty for some reason, was making her way to the brake room when she heard someone calling her as she past Grissom's office.

"Hey, Sara, can I talk to you for a sec?" It was Grissom.

"Yeah, sure." She said, walking in and sitting in front of his desk. "I'm not in trouble, am I?" She teased.

"Not entirely."

Confused, Sara looked over her shoulder out the door, searching for wondering eyes that might be watching them. "Should I close the door?" She asked, still confused.

"No, no, it's nothing like that." Grissom assured her, "Warrick told me you got _sick _at you crime scene today. Were you planning on telling me?" He asked, the last part in a whisper.

"Oh, _that's _what this is about." She covered part of her face with her hand, feeling her face flush. In all honesty, Grissom was the last person she wanted to find out; by someone else, as least. But she was planning on telling him, after she talked to a doctor.

"Well, were you?" He asked again.

"Yes. I was going to tell you after-" She looked back again, once she was sure they were clear, she continued, "after I talked to a doctor. I didn't want you to worry." She smiled at him, mentally asking for forgiveness.

The sight of Sara's smile made Grissom get a warm, happy feeling inside him. "Why don't you come over after shift? You can make an appointment then." He asked, his voiced hushed again.

"I'll see you then," she said as she rose to leave.

"Sara," Grissom called just short of her exiting his office. She looked back at him.

"Don't over work yourself," he said, knowing how she was. She could get so far into a case, she'd forget to eat.

"I'll try not to." She teased one last time before exiting, making her way to the break room for a small cup of water.

XX

"Hey," Sara called to Nick as she descended the stairs.

"Hey, Sara, I was just coming to get you." He began, holing up a large file, "I got surveillance footage from Janko Liquor, Hodges just put together some black and white stills. Check it out." He finished as he opened the file, handing her a picture.

The picture had Kevin, the vic's older brother, buying the beer, while Timmy, the victim, and a few other boys were 'causing ruckus' as Nick said. Of course, the owner wanted them out, so he sold them the beer, even though they were under age.

"Well, you know about the camera glass Warrick found?" He asked, "that means someone has this all on tape. I say we track down the other kids and see which one of them thinks he's Tarantino."

XX

"_What up? My name's Kevin, this is-" _Sara listened as Kevin introduced him and his 'boys'. Among those boys, was his brother Timmy. They'd confiscated the tape from one of Kevin's friends, hoping it might have the murder on tape. _This is just some stupid game, _Sara thought as Kevin and the others described their game. It was like one of those 'don't do this at home,' TV shows.

It started with them riding on the hood of a car; 'Speed Way Surfing,' Kevin called it. Next it had them getting hit with golf balls, which explained most of the round bruises on Timmy. The third, and final one, had been Timmy's idea. He called it: 'Bamboo Russian Roulette."

_Oh no, _Sara thought as she watched what looked like Kevin maneuver the bamboo pole down into the building, using the square hole in the roof as an entry way. Then, he pulled out a gun, and spun it down the pole, sending the bullets flying. Everyone went up, even Timmy. Most of the madness stopped when Kevin got shot in the arm, but they were drunk. The decided to do it one more time. Just one more.

Kevin climbed back up to the roof, and sent the gun back down. As it neared the end of the pole, the lends in the camera were shot out, and it fell to the ground; still recording video. It landed in just the right spot to see Timmy get a bullet through the chest, and fall to the ground, gasping for air.

Just as Warrick turned off the tape, Nick's phone went off. It was a text. "That was O'Riley. He just made the arrests." His said in a sad voice. Sometimes, solving a case didn't leave them feeling so great.

After they'd cleaned everything up, the three of them headed to their lockers. It was finally time to go home.

"What a shift. You guys wanna get someone breakfast?" Warrick asked as they entered the locker room.

"I'm in," Nick said.

Sara was about to agree, but then she remembered her plans with Grissom. "Sorry guys. I think I'm just gonna go home."

"Alright, but get some rest." He said, pointing at her with a serious look on his face.

"I promised I would. I'll see ya later, guys." She laughed as she exited. She wondered if Grissom had already gone home, or if he was in his office.

XX

_Finally, _Grissom sighed, setting his finished paperwork on the edge of his desk. He was closing the door to his office when Sara came around the corner, walking directly toward him.

"Hey," She greeted as she approached, "are we still on for tonight-or well, this morning?" She corrected herself.

"Yes," he said, locking his office door. "Are you ready?" He asked, nodding toward the parking lot.

"I'll meet you there." She whispered, and headed down the hall.

He hesitated. He knew it would look a bit strange if they left at the exact same time. He pretended to fiddle around with his door, to make sure it was locked. Once she was no longer in sight, he walked down the hall.

Her car was close to the end of the parking lot, so he was able to get into his car before she could get into hers. He was able to get back to his house before her, so he cleaned up a little, then started cooking. When ten minutes past, he started getting worried. He was done cooking their food, and had already started setting the table. What was taking her so long?

He heard what sounded like a car door shutting, followed by a knock at his door. When he answered, was surprised to find Sara looking very pale.

"Are you feeling okay?" He asked, stepping out of her way.

"To be honest, no, I'm not. But I think it's because I'm hungry." She lied, taking a seat on the couch. "What are you making?" She asked.

"Actually, I'm done. I was setting the table when you got here." He said as he walked back to the kitchen.

With that, they began their meal. This was the most time they'd spent together outside of work in a while. It wasn't by choice, though, it was just that the last few cases were very hard on them, especially time wise.

"Hey, why did it take you so long to get here?" Grissom asked, placing his plate in the sink.

_Crap. _Sara thought. She was hoping he wouldn't ask about that. She didn't want to tell him, but she didn't want to lie to him again. But, then again, she didn't want him to worry about her. What should she tell him?

She didn't realize how long she'd been silent until Grissom spoke again, "You got sick again, didn't you?"

_Damn it! _The look on her face said it all.

"Why didn't you tell me when you got here?" He asked.

"Because I didn't want you to worry! Besides, I was going to make an appointment after we ate." She felt awful for lying to him, even if it was something so small. "Please don't be mad." She begged.

His heart melted at how pitiful she sounded. "I'm not mad, Sara. I just don't want you to be sick." He picked up the phone and handed it to her. "Here, call them now. I'll start with the dishes."

He walked back into the kitchen. For a moment, Sara just stood there. That had gone much better than she thought it would. And even though she would never admit it, she liked having someone worry about her. It made her feel loved.

Grissom could hear Sara talking to someone on the phone, then the click of her hanging up the phone. "So, when are you in?" He asked.

"Actually, she was able to get me in today. I have an appointment at three o'clock."

XX

"Hi Sara, you haven't been here in a while." Said Dr. Mary Jacobs.

"I know. I honestly think I just have a stomach bug, but my, uh, _friend, _wanted me to make sure." Sara rolled her eyes at the thought of Grissom's concern.

"Alright then, tell me, what are your symptoms?"

"Well, for the past two weeks or so, I've been feeling very lightheaded and dizzy. Then yesterday, I threw up while I was at work, and again this morning."

"Oh…" Mary said quietly.

"What?" Sara asked after a pause.

"Um, Sara…when was the last time you had your period?"

Sara was caught off gourd by the question, "Uh, well…" She honestly couldn't remember at first. "I think it was the fifth or sixth of last month. That's when I usually have it…"

"So you're late?"

"Yeah…" Then it hit her. _Is she trying to imply that… No! _There was just no way! She'd been late for a week once, so that might not mean anything, right? "Whoa, you don't think I'm…?"

"Honestly, I'm not sure. You seem to be showing a few very common signs of being pregnant, but not all of them. Like you said, it could just be a bug, but…You said this started about two weeks ago, right?" Sara nodded, "that seems a bit long for a bug, Sara."Sara couldn't believe what she was hearing. Her mind went back to her night with Grissom. Could that one night have led up to this? She only remembered bits and pieces of it. But what about Hank? _No! _Surely it wasn't Hank's! They had always used protection…

"Sara, I can run a test if you want to make sure." Mary's voice interrupted her thoughts.

"Y-yeah, yeah that'd be great. Um, w-what's the most accurate test?" Sara stuttered out, still finding it hard to believe.

"Well, the most _accurate_ way to know is to do an internal exam." She watched as Sara's face flushed a bright red, "but I don't think you'd be comfortable with that. So, the best thing I can offer you is a blood test. Now, it may take a day or two to get the results back to you."

"O-o-okay." Sara said as she pulled up her sleeve.

Mary quickly took a blood sample. "Okay, Sara, just sign these papers and you can leave. Be sure to right down at least two contact numbers."

Sara scribbled her chicken scratch signature on the papers, put down two contact numbers-her house and her cell-and walked out of them room. What was she going to do if she was, indeed, pregnant? How could she manage a baby and still keep her job? How was she going to tell the team that she was possibly carrying their boss's baby? Or worse, if it came back positive, how was she going to tell Grissom? They had only been together for a month, and now they might be expecting a baby? This was all to much for her to handle. She needed to get back to her apartment and rest. Grissom had given her the day off, thankfully.

_God, Grissom…_

She wasn't even aware that she was home until she turned the car off. She walked to her door like a ghost and, once inside, she collapsed into bed, surprisingly tired. To tired to cry, even. The last thing that went through her mind was Grissom.

XX

Sara's day off had gone by in a flash, yet she still hadn't heard from Mary. She hoped to hear from her before heading into work, but she still didn't call. She nervously sat in the break room, all by herself. Not for long, though.

"Hey, Sara." Greeted Nick, "you okay? How was your day off?"

"Fine." She said quickly.

That raised a red flag in Nick's mind. Sara only said she was 'fine' when in fact she wasn't. He turned to make himself a cup of coffee, but watched her out of the corner of his eye. She was playing with her hands, he noted, and was watching the clock like a hawk.

"You sure you're okay, Sara?" Nick asked, turning to face her.

She nodded and looked away from him, but she could feel him staring her down. She wanted to disappear. Thankfully, Catherine walked in, breaking Nick's gaze.

"Hey, guys." She greeted, taking a seat across from Sara. She immediately noticed something was off, but chose not to address it. She knew all she would get from Sara was 'fine'.

Once everyone arrived, Sara figured Grissom would start handing out assignments, and everyone would forget about her condition. But once Grissom walked in, she noticed his hands were empty.

She wasn't the only one. "What, no assignments?" Asked Catherine.

"Sorry guys, it's a slow night." He looked around at everyone, but his eyes landed on Sara. She wasn't looking him in the eye.

He took a seat, trying to hide his concern. She hadn't called him since she left for her appointment…he hoped everything went well.

Instead of interrogating Sara, he chimed in on the conversations everyone else was having. Nick was complaining about some idiot who nearly hit him on his way to work. Warrick joked that that idiot was probably thinking the same thing. It went on this way for a few more minutes, then Sara's cell rang.

She fished her phone out of her pocket and red the caller ID. The contact wasn't saved into her phone. _It could be Mary._

"Sidle," she answered, getting up and walking out of the room.

"_Sara, hey. It's Mary." _

She stopped once she was a few steps outside the break room, glancing over her shoulder to see if anyone was watching. Of course, Grissom was, but no one else seemed to be paying much attention.

"S-so…did you get the results back?" She asked in a quiet voice.

"_Yep. They came back right as I was walking out the door. Congratulations, Sara! You are indeed pregnant." _Mary said happily from the other line.

Sara's heart skipped a beat. Everything around her seemed to go by in slow motion. She felt the sting of bile rising in her throat. "Thanks, Mary." She managed.

"_When would you like to schedule your next appointment? You'll need to come by and pick up a few vitamins and other things,"_

"Uh…I dunno. W-when can you get me in?"

"_Well, you can drop by tomorrow morning for your prescriptions."_

"Okay…anything else?" Her throat started burning.

"_Yes, it seems that you are five weeks along, so I can get you in for an ultrasound in about four or five weeks. Does the tenth of next month sound good to you?"_

"Yeah. U-uh…thanks, Mary."

"_No problem, honey." _

She slowly closed her cell phone. She was torn between going to the bathroom to puke, bursting into tears, or just going home all together. She knew that she couldn't do anything about it while she was working. She'd just have to try and wait until shift was over. She glanced back into the break room. Grissom was talking to Catherine, and not paying her much attention. She took her chance, and briskly walked to the bathroom.

Just as Sara had entered the bathroom, Greg had walked into the break room.

"Hey guys," he greeted, he glanced around the group for Sara, but there was no sign of her. "Where's Sara?" He asked.

Simultaneously, they looked into the hallway where she had been standing. But she was gone. "She's probably just in the bathroom." Nick said, sipping his coffee.

Grissom's phone went off in his pocket. It was a text from Brass. "Well, someone better go get her. We've got a 419 at the Rampart."

"I'll be right back," Catherine said, walking out of the room.

She opened the bathroom's squeaky door, and was greeted by a very strange sound, coming from the farthest stall. Her mind went off of Sara for a moment, and went to whoever was in the last stall. Whoever it was, they were vomiting a crying. _Great, _she thought. The last thing she needed right now was a bug going around the lab.

"Hello?" She called, knocking on the door, "are you okay?"

"I'm fine." Came a chocked response.

"Sara?" Catherine asked, taken aback. No one had mentioned her being sick.

"I said-" she coughed again, "I'm fine!"

"Sara, you are not fine. Open the door."

"Cath, please-"

"Fine. Just let me tell Grissom and the others that you're not coming with us." She said, knowing that would get her out of that stall.

"No! Wait-" she heard the toilet flush, and Sara slowly stepped into view. She'd never seen her co-worker in such condition. Her eyes were red, puffy, and glistened with unshed tears. Her was a deep shade of pink, and her voice was scratchy and tired. She helped Sara over to the sink, allowing her to wipe the edges of her mouth and splash water on her tired face.

"I'm sorry," Sara whispered in a scratchy voice.

"What the hell are you sorry for?"

"I don't know." She whimpered.

"Does this have something to do with that call you got earlier?"

When Sara didn't respond, Catherine got her answer. "Who was on the other line?" She asked.

"I can't talk about this right now, Cath." Sara wiped her face with a paper towel.

"Do you want me to drive you home?" Catherine asked, feeling like she should help her in some way.

"I want to say no, but-_hic-_I don't think I can-_hic_-drive right now." She hated it when she got the hiccups. It made her feel like a child.

"Okay, you stay here and calm down, and I'm going to tell Grissom."

"What? No, Cath-_hic-_"

"Sara, he's going to wonder where we are. I'm not going to give him any details, I'll just say that you aren't feeling well."

_That'll still worry him. _But what else could they do? Catherine was right. If they didn't say something soon, Grissom would get suspicious. "Okay," she sighed, and walked back to the stall, hiding herself.

XX

Grissom was looking at his watch when Catherine walked back into the break room.

"Catherine, everyone's waiting on us. What took- wait, where's Sara?" He asked, noticing her absence.

"She's not feeling well, I'm taking her home." She said simply.

_Not feeling well? She must've gotten sick again. _"She shouldn't be by herself, she's gotten sick like this at least three times now. Stay with her once you take her home."

"What? Gil, she-"

"Is sick, Catherine. I'd do the same thing it was you, or Nick, or Warrick. Something is wrong with her, and I don't wont her to hurt herself because no one was there to help her." After getting an unconvinced look form Catherine, he added "trust me, she'll appreciate it."

"Whatever you say." Catherine was obviously annoyed. She knew she was walking into trouble, and she knew that Sara wasn't going to be to happy.

XX

Twenty minutes later, Sara was stretched out across her couch in her favorite pajamas. Catherine was sitting on the very end. She'd already asked once what was wrong with her, but Sara just said it was a bug. Technically, she wasn't lying. It _was _the baby of an entomologist…

But that didn't sit well with Catherine. She knew Sara was hiding something, she just couldn't put her finger on it. She'd started sparking up a conversation with Sara, trying to fish something out of her younger colleague. After about an hour of talking, Sara had gotten up to use the bathroom three times. _She's gonna start noticing. _She thought, sitting back down on the couch. _I can't tell her, though, not until I talk with Grissom.._

She was suddenly very tired. "I'm sorry, Cath, but I think I'm going to take a nap. You can go now, if you'd like."

"Sara, do you know how mad Grissom would be if I left you here alone?"

"Fine," Sara was too tired to protest, and she fell asleep.

XX

Sara woke three hours later to the smell of coffee brewing in her kitchen. She didn't remember making coffee, and even if she did, she couldn't drink it. As she leaned up, she realized how bad she had to go to the bathroom. Without looking to see who was there, she darted to the bathroom. After relieving herself, she entered the kitchen.

"Want some coffee?" Asked Catherine.

_Yes! _"Uh, no thanks." She sighed, knowing that she couldn't drink coffee for a long, long time.

"You not wanting coffee? What, is your stomach still bothering you?" Catherine asked, pouring herself a cup.

"Yeah," Sara answered quickly.

Sara's phone went off in her bedroom. She quickly walked to pick it up. "Sidle," she answered.

"_Sara, it's Grissom. Catherine said you were asleep when I first called. I thought you might be awake by now. How are you feeling?" _

"Better, but-" she paused, looking out to see if Catherine was listening. Just to be safe, she walked to the farthest corner of her room. "I need to tell you something. After shift, stop by my place." She whispered.

"_Okay…see you then. Oh, and can you tell Catherine I need her at the lab?"_

"Yeah, sure." She closed her phone and walked back into the kitchen. "Was that Grissom again?" She asked.

"Yeah, he told me to tell you that he needed you at the lab."

"What for?""I don't know, he didn't say."

"If you're lying to me Sara, I'll-"

"I'm not lying, I swear!" Sara held her hands up in defense.

"Okay, but if you need anything, call me." Catherine said as she headed for the door.

"I will." Sara said as Catherine closed the door. She poured the remaining coffee down the sink, and walked over to the couch. An hour later, she was curled up in a ball, wondering how the hell she was going to tell Grissom about the baby. Just the thought of it caused a lump to form in her throat. She knew that this child would be loved very much, but, it would probably ruin her relationship with Grissom. Why would he wont to stay with the woman who ruined his career?

"It's not your fault, though," she said, rubbing her hand over her soon-to-be swollen abdomen, "He'll probably hate me for this. He took the risk we've wanted to take ever since we met, and now he could lose his job. I'll lose mine, too." Tears were falling down her face, but that was it. She wasn't sobbing, but it felt good to let the tears fall.

"You don't deserve a life like this, or a sad excuse of a mother like me, I'm sorry."

"Sara?" Someone called from outside her door.

Realizing how loud she was talking, she put a hand over her mouth. She hoped that voice didn't belong to who she thought it did. But, of course, it did.

"Grissom." She said in a low voice. "What are you doing here?"

"We finished just after Catherine got back to the lab." His voice sounded confused, he'd obviously overheard some of what she'd said. She stepped out of the way to let him in.

"How much of that did you hear?" She asked nervously.

"I…came in when you said that we'd 'taken the risk'…Sara, what the hell were you talking about? Why are we going to lose are jobs?"

It was then he noticed that she was crying. Her face was pink, along with the rims of her eyelids. But now, she began to let out short sobs.

"I'm so sorry, Grissom." She cried as she sat on the couch.

One by one, things began to come together. The dizziness, the vomiting, the risk, them losing their jobs, and what glued it all together was Sara referring to herself as a 'sad excuse of a mother'.

"Sara…are you pregnant?"

Sara broke down into uncontrollable sobs, covering her face with her hands. "I'm so sorry, Grissom."

XX

**I am so, so sorry this took so long! I'm out of school, but summer has been a bit busy for me. I know some of you were hoping it wouldn't end up this way, but, I hope you continue to read.**

**Please review, but nothing mean, please.**

**TBC!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Thank you to everyone who reviewed! I loved them all, and couldn't stop smiling after I read them. You guys are what keep this story going. Without you, I don't know if I'd be motivated enough to continue. I can't thank you all enough! Oh, and sorry for the cliffhanger, lol.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing but the OC's, and all mistakes are mine. Some lines are barrowed from/inspired by scenes from the episodes "Crash and Burn", "Last Laugh", and "Forever."**

**Chapter 4:**

"I'm so sorry, Grissom."

Everything went silent. Grissom just stood there, staring at the wall. So many things were going through his mind. It felt as if his world was, literally, spinning out of control. Feeling like he'd been punched in the gut, he slowly sank onto the couch next to Sara, but his eyes remained on the wall. After he finally came back into reality, it hit him like slap to the face. Sara finally uncovered her face, and his mouth went dry. Sara, the love of his life, was in the most pitiful state he'd ever seen before. The look on her face made him feel guilty inside. _I put her through this, _he thought. _This is my fault. _

They stared at each other for a long moment, both thinking the same thing. _It's my fault. I did this. I'm so sorry. _

Grissom was unable to hold in his emotions any longer. In the blink of an eye, he had his arms wrapped tightly around her, rocking her as they both cried, begging for the other's forgiveness. "We'll get through this," Grissom whispered into her ear. "We'll get through this."

"How?" Sara asked hoarsely, her arms still wrapped around his neck, "_how_?"

He planted a kiss into her hair. He honestly didn't know how. Once Ecklie found out, one of them; or even both of them, was going to fired. They might have been able to hide their relationship, but there was just no way they could hide _their baby._

_One hour later…_

Sara and Grissom sat cuddled next to each other on the couch. After the news had settled in, it was time for questions. Sara had already made it very clear that she was _not _considering abortion, and that she was _certainly not _putting the child into foster care, her reasons being that many foster homes end up harming the child more than caring for it. That wasn't her only reason; she had a few others, but she wouldn't share them with Grissom for a long time.

"Sara," Grissom began, his voice hoarse, "this is going to sound terrible, but, a-are you positive that…the baby is…mine?"

"It's not far enough along to Hank's." She said, mentally thanking God. _The last time we'd had sex was… _She couldn't even remember. But she did remember all the times she would get paged just as Hank's shirt was off or her jeans unbuttoned. Only now was she thankful for that.

"H-how far along are you?"

"Five weeks." She sniffled.

"Who else knows?"

"Only my doctor. But, I didn't tell her, y'know, that the father was my boss."

"Maybe… no one else will know that, either."

She shifted out of his arms and looked up at him. "What? Griss, I can't exactly _hide_ it. Once I…y'know, start showing, p-people are gonna-"

"Think it's Hank's."

Now she turned her body to face him, a look of extreme confusion on her face. A million questions went through her mind.

"Why…why would they think…" Then it hit her. No one but the two of them knew about what happened that night at Grissom's house, and that they were together. It would make sense that they would think Hank was the father. Her night with Grissom was the night of the day she'd left Hank, so…

"Are we really, _really _going to do this?" She asked slowly, looking into his eyes.

He cupped her face with his hand, gently brushing his thumb over her cheek. "What other choice to we have?"

Sara could hardly contain her smile as she leaned forward, kissing him. Her head rested on his chest as he lied down, his head on the arm rest of the couch. His hand found a strand of Sara's hair, and began twirling it through his fingers. Like her, he couldn't believe they were doing this. But they didn't have many options. But most of all, he couldn't believe they were having a baby.

A baby.

_Their _baby.

He and Sara were having a _baby. _

XX

_Two and a half weeks later_

It was one of Sara's better days as she headed into work. For the first few days after learning she was pregnant, she and Grissom couldn't quite look each other in the eye at work. But now, with Sara almost eight weeks, they'd both gotten used to it. Surprisingly to both of them, no one had quite caught on. You'd think the number two crime lab in the country would notice certain things, like Sara's many trips to the bathroom, lack of coffee, her dizziness, the occasional change in attitude. But everyone seemed to be to wrapped up in their own business to notice.

Except Catherine.

She'd first said something the day after she'd taken Sara home.

"_Hey, Sara, are you feeling better today?"_

"_Yeah," she answered honestly. Even though she was still in shock, she was feeling better. "Thanks, for…y'know, everything you did yesterday."_

"_You're welcome. If it happens again, let me know."_

"_I will."_

"Seriously_, Sara. You know I wouldn't mind."_

Sara just blew it off, not thinking much of it. But as time went by, she noticed Catherine was keeping a close eye on her. _She's a mother, of course she's going to notice. _So far, she hadn't asked any major questions, just small things like: "Are you feeling okay?" or, "Do you need any help anything?" or, "Don't you think you should take it easy?". She'd asked her these questions before, but now, they were becoming more frequent. Sara knew that once Catherine was sure about her suspicions, she'd confront her.

It didn't take long.

Sara walked into the locker room, not really sure how to feel about her not-quite-finished case. They all knew that their guy was guilty, but he refused to admit to anything. She was so deep in thought, she literally walked right into Catherine, causing her to drop her purse.

"Oh, shit, I'm sorry Catherine." She said as she bent to pick it up. She knew the second she picked it up that she shouldn't have. A wave of dizziness washed over her, and she fell back onto the thin bench between the rows of lockers.

"Sara!" Catherine gasped, sitting beside her, "are you okay?" She asked.

"Yeah," she responded quickly, holding a hand to her forehead. _As if that'll stop the room from spinning_. "Long day, I guess."

"Did something happen at your scene?"

"No. I mean, Nick and I did tested a theory,-" Sara paused, laughing at herself for a short moment, "and I fell on my ass, but-"

"You fell?" Catherine interrupted, her eyes darted to Sara's stomach for a split second, "are you okay?"

"Yeah," Sara said, and explained her and Nick's theory, and how she'd fallen on her butt while trying to pull a towel bar from the wall.

"It didn't even hurt. I had padding on."

"Okay," Catherine said, standing up to open her locker.

"That's not what I'm worried about." She whispered to herself.

"What?" Sara asked, opening her own locker.

"Sara…" She paused, not sure how to phrase her next question, "is there…anything you wanna talk about? Something you wanna…get off your chest?"

"What do you mean?"

"Sara," Catherine gave her a look, her voice low. She looked directly at Sara's abdomen, then back at her face, which was turning red.

"What? I-I-I…I'm not…" Sara stuttered, looking around to see if anyone else was in the locker room.

"Sara, I'm a mother. I went through all of it. I was going to notice sooner or later." She said with a sad smile, walking over to stand next to her younger colleague. Sara gave her a sad, understanding look. It was similar to the one she gave her when she'd left Hank.

"How far along are you?" Catherine asked in a voice just over a whisper.

"Eight weeks." Sara said, biting her bottom lip.

"So…it's…"

"Hank's." Sara said in a voice she herself almost couldn't hear, finally looking at Catherine. The look of shock and sympathy on her face almost made her want to tell her the truth.

_Almost._

"Oh, God…Sara. I'm so sorry."

"Just…don't tell anyone? I mean, I know they'll know soon enough, but the only other person who knows is Grissom."

"I wont." She put a hand on Sara's shoulder. "If you need anything, _anything, _let me know."

"I will." Sara sighed, closing her locker and walking out of the locker room. She felt bad for lying, but, no one could find out. Feeling a bit exposed, all she wanted to do now was go home, curl up in bed, and go over another one of her pregnancy books.

XX

Grissom was sitting in his office, trying to finish the mountain of paperwork that covered most of his desk, when Sara walked in.

"Hey, Grissom, can I talk to you?" She asked, closing the door.

"Sure." He answered, not looking up from his paperwork.

She took the seat in front of his desk, crossing her right leg over her left. "Catherine knows."

That got his attention. His head shot up from his paperwork, his eyes darted to the door, and filled with relief when he noticed it was closed.

"Why did you tell her?" He suddenly asked, sounding either frustrated or upset, she couldn't be sure.

"I didn't!" She said quickly, holding her hands up in defense, "she found out on her own."

"What, exactly, did you tell her?"

"I didn't tell her it was yours if that's what you're asking," she whispered.

"No, I'm not." He said, realizing how bad that had sounded, "I mean, did you tell her anything specific?"

"I told her I was eight weeks, and that you were the only other person who knew."

"But you're not eight weeks yet…" Grissom said, confused.

"I know, but I almost am. Plus, that puts…uh, y'know, when I was still with Hank."

"Oh,"

"I know what I'm doing." She winked, rising from her chair. She stopped just short of leaving, and turned around.

"I'm gonna head home," she said, her voice low, "feel free to stop by."

With that, Sara left his office, and eventually the lab. Leaving an anxious Grissom, struggling to finish his paperwork once more.

XX

"Sara?"

"Yeah,"

"Is it going to call me 'dad'?"

Sara looked up from her bowl of cereal and stared at him. "What?"

"When, y'know, the baby's born…what is it going to call me?"

_Oh, God, _Sara thought. She hadn't thought of that. Of course the baby was going to call her 'momma', but what would she do if she brought it to the lab one day and it screamed 'daddy' or 'dadda' when it saw Grissom? _It, _Sara thought, _I hate referring to my baby as an 'it'._

"I…I don't know." Sara said, looking down. Only then did she notice the way her stomach _just barely _poked out from under her tank top. She dropped her spoon.

Startled by the sudden noise, Grissom looked back at Sara.

"Sara? I-I didn't mean anything by that, it can call me what-"

"I'm showing." She said in a voice Grissom almost didn't hear.

"What?"

"I'm _showing!" _She said, her voice louder. But not by much.

"Sara, you're not-"

"Look!" She said as she stood, turning sideways and tugging her tank top closer to her body. Sure enough, her little baby bump became much more visible.

Grissom just stared. He hadn't expected her to show for at least a few more weeks. _She is thinner than most women, _he thought. Still, at only seven and a half weeks pregnant, she shouldn't be showing, right? He watched her look down at her plump little belly, and he couldn't help but grin. Only then was he aware that she was calling his name.

"What's so damn amusing?" She asked, barely able to contain her own smile.

Ignoring her, Grissom rose from his chare, and wrapped his arms around her waist. Holding her close, he planted a kiss on her forehead. He felt indestructible. It seemed that nothing could hurt him, or the ones he loved.

If only fate felt the same way.

XX

_A few days later,_

"Hey, no one's here to claim the body?" Sara asked, walking into the halls of the morgue.

"Nope." Warrick said, joining her, "I don't know what's worse: consulting a grieving parents, or finding a kid with no parent at all."

"No parents?"

"No, this kid has been through seven foster homes in seven years." Warrick said, "the system lost track of him a year ago."

"McKinley High School said the same thing: he was out more than he was in." Sara sighed, closing the folder she had been carrying. "Kid was a ghost."

A few hours earlier, Sara and Warrick had been called out to a scene in Death Valley. A young man named Toby Wellstone was found dead, dressed like her was getting married, and posed as though he was already in a casket. They'd figured it was a suicide, but something didn't seem right.

According to Robbins, Toby had treated himself to a burger, fries, and chocolate shake just a little while before he died. His COD was an overdoes of Fentanyl due to also taking Cisapride. The Cisapride caused his stomach to not go into reflex, and it also sped up the absorption of Fentanyl from the skin patch.

"No nausea, no vomit." Warrick noted.

"No vomit, no chance of survival." Sara added. "Kid did his homework."

The victim also had to scars on his left wrist, indicating he'd tried committing suicide before. "Third time's the charm." Robbins said, covering the body and rolling it back into the cooler.

Sara's cell went off as the left the morgue. "Sidle,"

"We have another DB in Death Valley," replied Detective Lockwood. "Female, looks to be the same age as Toby."

XX

"Getting the strange sense of déjà vu." Sara sighed as they approached the body.

"Yeah, it's raining bodies out here." Warrick agreed.

"National Park Service found her," said Detective Lockwood, who had been standing over the body, "she was beyond our perimeter, we had no reason to believe there were more bodies."

"Their looking for any others," he added, pointing to the other officers.

Warrick asked the coroners to roll the body over. She had several small gashes on her legs and arms. She was also wearing a black dress. Toby had been wearing a suit, Warrick noted. But, unlike Toby, she had no prior scaring on her wrists. But she did have the same trans dermal patch on her hand. She also had a white substance on her shoulder, similar to the one found near Toby.

"Seems like Romeo to Juliet." Sara sighed.

"Who got out of bed and ended up a half mile away." Warrick added.

Sara noticed that the girls dress was way to big. Something just didn't feel right about this case. What was the white substance? How did the two of them get out there?

"Something's off."

XX

As Sara processed the dress, she couldn't help but wonder how the two kids had gotten out there. Someone else had to have been involved. The question was who. When Sara was finished, she joined Warrick in the break room. After reporting her small amount of findings, he gave her his. The sexual assault kit had come back negative, her stomach contents were the same, and so was COD. The weirdest things was that her prints had been on Toby's Fentanyl patch, and Toby's prints were on hers.

"She was a willing participant in this." Sara said, rather surprised. "Why didn't we find any trash at the scene, and why didn't we find a note?"

"Y'know, I read somewhere that only fifty percent of all suicides actually _leave_ a note. You'd think with all the trouble they went through, they'd wanna be found." Warrick stated.

"Together," Sara added.

"Yeah, and after she was sedated, she crawls away from the scene?""Why?"

Their conversation was ended by a knock at the door. It was Lockwood. The girl's library card matched a missing person's report. Her name was Jill Frommer, and her mother was on her way in to positively ID the body.

_Here comes the grieving parent, _Sara thought, remembering Warrick's prior statement.

XX

After Sara interviewed Jill's mother, something about her-like the rest of the case- didn't feel right. When she'd asked if Jill and Toby had been romantically involved, Mrs. Frommer hadn't directly answered her question. When she'd asked for a list of friends, Mrs. Frommer implied that her daughter had had no friends. Sara and Warrick planned to go to the victims' school the next day.

Sara had returned home to get a few hours of sleep, freshen up and have a small snack before they went to the school. After sleeping for a few hours, she headed to the bathroom. She stood sideways in front of the mirror; in only her bra and panties, looking at her stomach. It poked out a full inch farther than it before she had become pregnant, Sara noted. Smiling, she removed the rest of her clothing and got in the shower.

XX

After interviewing a few-and rather rude-teen girls at the victims' school, they discovered that the dress Jill had been wearing, wasn't actually Jill's. It lead them to a-what the teen girls referred to her as- a 'volunteen' at a local hospital, named Alyssa Jameson. The girl had given Jill the dress, but had not given her the drugs. Feeling like they'd pretty much wasted their time, Sara and Warrick headed back to the lab.

"Y'know," Warrick began as they headed for Greg Sanders' lab, "Jill's friends seemed like they were brain washed. Or brain dead. And her mom's was absentee at best."

"Well, teenagers are very suggestive, if Toby was all she had going, it was the biggest influence in her life."

"Don't even bother viewing those surveillance tapes, no hospital has prescribed Cisapride in over three years." Greg informed them.

"So that's it?" Sara asked, her anger rising slightly. How could the kids get the drugs if they didn't get them from a hospital?

"Not exactly," Greg said. He informed them that the white substance found at both scenes was the same substance, and that it was baby vomit. But not just any baby's vomit: _their _baby's vomit. No wonder Mrs. Frommer had avoided Sara's question.

Sara and Warrick immediately called Lockwood and told him to get some officers to search the crime scenes for any sign of the baby, while the tree of them went and interviewed the mother again. Her credit card had showed that se had purchased a suit in the young man's department at JC Penny.

"Look's like mom is a personal shopper, and chauffer, huh?" Warrick asked, looking in Mrs. Frommer's car and seeing rappers for burgers, and cups for shakes and fries. "Mom's busy,"

"To busy to notice a baby, apparently." Sara added.

Lockwood knocked on the door, and Mrs. Frommer answered very quickly. After showing the warrant, they entered and began their search. Warrick found love letters in a drawer, and Sara found Cisapride and Fentanyl in one of the cabinets. Mrs. Frommer's explanation for them was that her husband had gone through chemo, and that the Fentanyl was for her back pain. "Why didn't you tell us that Jill and Toby had access to these?" Warrick asked.

"You didn't ask."

All of a sudden, the sound of baby's laughter and cooing came from the fridge. _What the hell? _Sara thought as Warrick walked around her, slowly opening the door. Her eyes landed on a baby monitor, which sat in front of three baby bottles.

They walked towards the sound, and found a tiny little baby in one of the bedrooms, cooing happily at them as they entered.

"I'm this baby's only chance," Mrs. Frommer said as she picked up the infant.

"Lady, you are _out _of chances." Sara spat.

"Watching people kill themselves is not against the law in Nevada." She replied, equally as cold.

"So you encouraged them to take the pills?" Warrick asked, "and drove them out to Death Valley after their last meal."

"There's nothin' like a little 'positive reinforcement', is there?" Sara asked sarcastically.

"They were _beyond_ saving." Mrs. Frommer explained.

"I think we can convince a jury that you did more than just _watch._" Warrick informed her.

"Not helping a child in danger is a misdemeanor, you might as well right me up a parking ticket." Mars. Frommer laughed.

"I'm gonna right you up on murder," Sara said, nodding to Lockwood to arrest her, "and then I'm gonna call child services."

"Go ahead," Mrs. Frommer said, a hint of panic in her voice, "I'm next of kin, and without a record I'll get him back in a second."

She handed the baby off to Warrick. "It's all gonna be better with door number two," Sara spat as she was handcuffed.

"You think we even stand a chance?" She asked Warrick after Mrs. Frommer had been taken out of the room.

"No," he said sadly, looking down at the baby in his arms. It smiled at him, and did the same as it looked back at Sara.

_Just think, what if I'm as bad of a mother as that woman? _Sara thought, looking in the child's eyes for a moment. She rubbed the baby's arm with her thumb, and he giggled at her.

"I think he likes you," Warrick teased, knowing Sara saw herself as 'bad with children'.

Sara just smiled. Then the baby reached out for her.

Warrick couldn't help but laugh at the look that came across her face. "Here, you hold him while-" he paused, looking sadly down at the child, "while I call child services."

Warrick walked into the other room, and Sara was alone with the baby. "Hey, little guy," she smiled as the baby's hands moved around her face.

"You think I'd be a good mom?" She whispered into his ear. As if on cue, he giggled and banged his hands on her shoulders.

"Thanks, little guy." Sara laughed just before Warrick reentered.

"Child services is on their way." He said sadly. The baby's hands brushed over Sara's forehead, and ran back and forth through her hair, frizzing it. All three of them laughed.

"Look's like you made yourself a friend," Warrick teased.

"He just likes me for my hair."

"Y'know, Sara, you really _are _good with kids." Warrick smiled.

Sara stared at him for a moment. _Does he know? _She thought,_ or is he just being nice?_

"Uh, thanks, Warrick." She said quickly, using her free hand to fix her hair. Warrick laughed when the baby ruffed it up again.

"What, do you like it better this way?" Sara said to the infant, who gurgled at her happily.

Sara didn't put the baby down until child services arrived. When they took the infant from her, he burst into tears. Sara's heart went out to the poor thing.

"Sometimes I hate solving a case." She said sadly. As the child services car pulled out of the driveway, and the baby's wails could still be heard. It made her heart sink.

"What do you mean? That woman has no right to-."

"I just wish we could do more the baby." Sara said quickly, looking down at the sidewalk. She thought of the few years she'd spent in foster care. It made her stomach turn.

"Oh," Warrick sighed, understanding. Even though Sara would never admit it _to him, _he knew she had a soft spot for children. He, too, wished that they could do more.

Once they were in the car and on their way back to the lab, Sara couldn't help but wonder about her own child. What if she was just like Mrs. Frommer? What if she eventually drove her child to suicide? What if her baby ended up like Jill-with no friends, a baby of it's own, and a bipolar boyfriend/girlfriend? She absently rested her hand on her stomach, rubbing it gently.

_No matter what happens, _She thought, _I will always be there for you. If you fall, I'll be there to catch you. _

XX

"Sara, are you okay?"

Sara looked up from her pregnancy book. Grissom was seated all the way at the other end of the couch, but she looked directly into his eyes.. "What do you mean?"

"You haven't spoken more than three sentences to me since I put you on that case with Warrick. Did something happen?"

_Oh. _Truth be told, that case had bothered her much more than she thought it would. She hadn't meant to avoid Grissom, she just couldn't stop thinking about all of her 'what if's'. She knew if she told him why, he'd be worried. But, she really wanted to get it off her chest.

"That case just…really bothered me."

"How so?"

She took a deep breath. "At the end of our case, we found out that our two _teenage _victims had a baby," she began, "the girl victim's mother pretty much helped them commit suicide, and we had to give the baby to child services. I just…couldn't help but wonder if I-"

"Sara," Grissom interrupted, knowing where she was going. "Don't think, for a single second, that you'll be anything like that woman. You'll be a great mother." He smiled at her, hoping it would help.

It didn't.

"But what if I'm not?" Sara cried, her voice pitiful, "what if I can't handle it? "

"You have me, Sara." He said, sliding next to her, holding her close, "I'll do everything in my power to make sure that that baby, and it's mother, are happy. We'll get through anything and everything that happens to us." He waited for her to look him in the eye before continuing.

"No matter what happens, Sara," he said, "I will always be right here, ready to help you."

With that, Sara lost it. She wrapped her arms around his neck, buried her face into his chest, and cried. She cried and cried, and Grissom was holding her the whole time. _I don't deserve him, _she thought, _he's too good for me. _She felt like the luckiest woman in the world. Only now did she realize just how much this baby would be loved.

Her baby was the luckiest in the world.

XX

**I didn't want to leave you with a cliff hanger four times in a row. I wanted to get this up before I went on vacation (for a week). Let me know what you think! **

**TBC!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Again, I can't thank you enough for the reviews! I was nice in the last chapter and didn't leave you with a cliffhanger, but I can't say the same about this one! There is gonna be a ****BIG**** surprise in this chapter, one that I hope you all are going to be happy with. **

**Disclaimer: I own nothing, all mistakes are mine. Some lines are barrowed from/inspired by scenes from the episodes "Play With Fire" and "Inside the Box", there are a few small lines from/inspired by "Crash and Burn," but, technically, this whole story is. Also, I'm kind of changing a few things in the explosion scene of "Play With Fire", just to make the story a little more dramatic. **

**Chapter 5:**

"So I'm thinking…the vic was car-jacked." Sara said, exiting the car. "Dragged to a secluded location, raped, murdered, body dump. What do you think?"

"Killer had her in the car, easy getaway." Answered Nick, "But still, why take her all the way up the bleachers, to risk getting caught in a room with only one way out?"

Sara, Nick, and Grissom had been working on a case involving a woman found dead at a high school. The location suggested that it was a body dump, and so did the contents inside the victim's car. While she and Nick were processing the car, Grissom was in autopsy.

Nick's phone beeped, it was a text. "Brass has the vic's motel room, I'm gonna go process it."

"I'll drop you off, and take the evidence back to the lab." Sara agreed, picking up her kit.

XX

Only twenty minutes after Sara had dumped her trace evidence on Hodges and her DNA evidence on Greg, her phone went off. It was a number she didn't recognize.

"Sidle,"

"_Hi, Sara, it's Mary. Mary Jacobs."_

"Oh," Sara said. _Why would she be calling me? Did something new come up in the tests? What if-_

Sara stopped herself. She wasn't going to think about her many 'what if's' again. Not while she was working, at least."Hi, um, how can I help you?"_"I just wanted to remind you about your appointment, it's this Saturday."_

"Oh, right." Sara said, hitting herself on her forehead. She had completely forgotten about it. She hadn't even told Grissom.

_Grissom. _Would he want to come?

"Thanks, Doc. I honestly forgot." Sara laughed.

"_My pleasure. Have you been taking your medication?"_

"Yes," Sara nodded, even though she couldn't see her.

"_Is the father going to be there, too?"_

"I don't know. He's beyond happy, but-" she smiled, knowing that Grissom really was ecstatic about the baby, even though he couldn't show it. "But I haven't told him about the appointment, he may have to work."

"_Oh, well I hope he can make it. I'd love to meet him." _

"I'll see if he can make it. Thanks again, Doctor."

"_Take care, Sara." _

It was noon, and, now that she thought about it, she was kind of hungry. All she could think about now was the two PB&J sandwiches and the bottle of water she'd packed for lunch. She'd pretty much forgotten about Mary's phone call as she pulled her sandwich out of her lunch bag. Until Grissom walked by, that is.

She got up just as he walked away. She needed to tell him now before she forgot again. He walked into the DNA lab, and began talking to Greg. Patiently, she waited for him to leave. As she began to catch up with him, he walked into Archie's lab, and talked to him and Nick. Again, she waited. _If he would just stay put for one second…_

_Okay, here goes nothing! _She thought as Grissom walked away. He was walking into his office, _perfect_! For all of three seconds. Just as Grissom entered, so did some other man. Most likely a lab tech, Sara guessed. He had questions for Grissom, so Sara decided to try again later.

_Maybe Greg is done with my evidence, _she thought as Greg's lab came into view. He looked very confused. She had considered asking him why, but was knocked off her feet. The building was shaking. The DNA had exploded right in front of her. She was flung into the wall, landing face first in a pile of glass and other debris. She watched Greg struggle to get up, only to fall back down. A wave of extreme dizziness came over her as she rolled onto her back, glass piercing her jacket and into her skin. She could hear people screaming; some of them were calling her name, but with the room around her spinning, she couldn't tell who or where the voices were coming from.

The last thing that went through her mind was her baby.

XX

Grissom had been in the middle of a conversation when the building shook, and glass shattered throughout the halls. Without thinking, Grissom ran towards the DNA lab. He heard screaming, lots of screaming, but couldn't make out what was being said. As he turned the corner, though, he could hear-what sounded like-Catherine.

"Greg! Oh my God, wake up! Sara, can you hear me?" She was screaming.

Through the smoke, he could make out Catherine shaking Greg's unconscious body, and Sara lying unconscious a few feet away. "Sara!" Grissom screamed, running to her. He wanted to wrap his arms around her, and take her to the hospital himself. It took everything he had not too. He shook her lightly, hoping for a response. Nothing.

"Sara? Sara, wake up!"

She mumbled something incoherent, turning her head slightly.

_She's awake! _"Sara! Oh thank God, can you hear me? Are you okay?"

"The…baby" she mumbled in a voice so low he almost didn't hear her.

"What?"

"B-baby," was all she could manage before passing out again.

"Shit." Grissom hissed. He could hear the paramedics running down the hall. "Over hear!" He shouted. A group of four men came into view, and immediately began working on Greg and Sara, setting them on stretchers and putting an IV into both of them.

"What are there names?" One of them asked as they walked down the hall.

"Greg Sanders and Sara Sidle," Catherine asked, running after them. Grissom quickly fallowed, not wanting Sara out of his sight. "Sara is pregnant," he heard Catherine tell the paramedics, who quickened their pace.

As the paramedics exited the building, Grissom became aware that the lab's parking lot was already filled with people-many of them injured in some way. Grissom and Catherine fallowed the paramedics until Greg and Sara were in the ambulance.

"Grissom!" Nick called, running across the parking lot, Warrick close behind him. "Are they gonna be okay?"

"I don't know," he managed. Sara and their child was the only thing going through his mind. Sara had gone through so much lately. If she lost the baby…

He could only imagine.

XX

Bright, white lights were the first thing Sara saw when she opened her eyes. Due to past experiences, she knew she was in a hospital. Her left hand was on fire, her head hurt, and her back stung whenever she moved.

"Miss Sidle?" A deep voice asked, "Miss Sidle, are you awake? Can you hear me?"

"Hhm," she managed, leaning up.

"Great. My name is Aaron Nichols. Dr. Jacobs told me who you were when you were brought in this morning-"

"What time is it?" She asked.

"It's about one thirty. You've been asleep for roughly three hours."

"Doctor…" She began, tears forming in her eyes, "is…is th-the baby-"

"No need to worry, Miss Sidle," Dr. Nichols smiled, "the little one is fine. As far as we can tell, no damage has been done."

Sara sank back into her pillow, relief washed over her.

"Oh, I almost forgot, Dr. Jacobs informed me that you were scheduled for an ultrasound tomorrow. If you would like, I can arrange for it to be done today."

"That would be great." Sara said, smiling. "But, can I call my boyfriend first? He'd want to be here."

"Sure, Miss Sidle. Your cell phone is on the night stand." He said, walking out to give her some privacy.

Sara snatched up her phone and dialed Grissom's number.

"_Grissom,"_

"Hi,"

There was a pause. _He must be at the lab, _she thought, _or else he'd be screaming in my ear._

"_Sara, are you okay? Is the baby-"_

"Everything is fine, Griss." She said. She heard him let out a sigh. "_Thank God,"_

"That's actually what I called about," she began, "I'm scheduled for an ultrasound today, and I was wondering if you'd like to come."

"_Oh, Sara, I wish I could, but the lab's a mess, and I'm about to go to interrogation with Nick-"_

"It's fine," Sara said. She sounded hurt, and Grissom felt terrible.

"_I'm sorry, honey. I'll see you later, okay?"_

"Okay,"

"_Bye," _

"Bye," she closed the phone, and waited for Dr. Nichols to return.

XX

Grissom returned his phone to his pocket, and walked back around the corner to join Nick.

"Who was that?" Nick asked.

"Sara, she said everything was fine."

"Good," Nick sighed, "I think Warrick and I are gonna see her after shift, you want to come?"

"I'll try too, but the sheriff-"

Brass and their suspect came into view. All conversation was over.

XX

"Are you ready to see your baby, Sara?" Asked the young nurse.

Sara nodded. Her heart was racing. She didn't know is she was nervous or excited. The ultrasound was going to be in 4D, and the nurse had told her what it would look like, and sound like.

"Alright, lets see those cute little babies."

"_Babies_?"

"I'm just teasing, Sara." The nurse laughed.

Sara laughed too. She turned her head and looked at the screen. It was a bright gold color, like the nurse had said, but it still looked a lot different then Sara had imagined. "Look, Sara, there's your baby!" The nurse smiled, pointing to the tiny little body that was squirming around on the screen. Sara could only stare.

The nurse moved her hand around, and something else came into view. "Huh," she said, "looks like you've got two in there,"

"You're not getting me with that again," Sara said, rolling her eyes.

"No, I'm serious. You're having twins, Miss Sidle."

Sara's eyes shot back to the screen. Now there were two tiny little bodies on the screen. Both of them were wriggling around. "Oh my God," Sara said, laughing. She wasn't sure whether she should be happy or not, but she couldn't help but laugh. The nurse took several pictures of each baby, and a few of them together. With a few clicks of the mouse, Sara was able to hear each baby's heart beat. "It looks like they are both healthy and-" Sara barely listened as she talked. All she could think about now was telling Grissom.

"…You can come back and confirm the genders in about ten weeks, it's too early to tell now."

"Oh, uh-I will. Thank you."

XX

Sara was back in her original hospital room twenty minutes later, looking over the photos. She couldn't believe that she was having twins. _Twins_! _Catherine's gonna love this, _she thought. She was extremely nervous. Now, everything she had feared about becoming a parent was multiplied by two. Two diapers to change, two children to feed, two little lives to protect…

_"No matter what happens, Sara, I will always be right here, ready to help you." _Grissom had told her.

_Grissom, _she thought. She wished he'd been there with her. Seeing their child-_children _moving around, hearing their heartbeats…No words could describe it.

XX

Sara didn't realize she'd fallen asleep, but when she woke up, her pictures were still in her hands. She looked at them again, grinning from ear to ear. As she set them on the nightstand, she noticed that there were two tan teddy bears on the side of her bed. Confused, she rubbed her eyes and looked at them again. Yep, they were their, she wasn't imagining them. After propping herself up, she picked up the bears, turning them to see if there was a note attached.

"Those are from Nick and Warrick,"

Startled, Sara dropped the two bears, and looked in the direction of the voice. It was Catherine, sitting in a chair next to her bed.

"Don't scare me like that!" She gasped.

"Sorry," Catherine apologized, "sleep well?"

Sara nodded. "What time is it?"

"Kind of late, nine-ish, but-"

"I didn't keep you from anything, did I?"

"No, trust me, I have _plenty _of time on my hands. Five days to be exact." Catherine assured her.

"That's actually why I'm here."

"What do you mean?"

"I…found out what happened in the lab." Catherine sighed in a low, sad voice. "And, like I told Greg, I wanted you to hear it from me."

She took a deep breath. "The explosion was my fault," Catherine said quickly, her voice still low. "I'm the reason…that you're in here."

"Catherine-"

"I'm so, so sorry, Sara." Catherine interrupted, "I've been so stressed, I wasn't even paying attention-"

"Catherine!" Sara said, her voice much louder, "It's not like it was intentional! And besides, _I'm_ fine," She gestured to her stomach, "_We_ are fine, everything is okay."

"Not for Greg." Catherine sighed, "he can't even lay on his back."

Sara closed her eyes. The images of Greg flying through the glass walls of the DNA lab came flooding back. She quickly opened them.

"When are they letting him out?" Sara asked.

"Not for another day or two, at least. Even then, he'll be on paid leave."

"I wonder when they'll let _me _out of here." Sara laughed, only half joking.

"Who knows," Catherine laughed, "they may want to keep an eye on the _two_ of you for a little while longer."

As much as she wanted to correct her, Sara kept quiet. She wanted Grissom to be the first one to know. God, she wished he could have been there.

"Warrick and Nick said they'd come see you tomorrow," Catherine suddenly said, rising from her chair.

Sara said her thanks, and Catherine left. She sat there, alone, clutching the two teddy bears. She wanted Grissom. She wanted him to be there, holding her hand, telling her that everything would be okay.

XX

It was late, and far past visiting hours when Grissom finally made it to the hospital. He'd wanted to come the second his shift was over, but due to the sheriff and a mountain of paperwork, he'd been stuck at the lab for an extra three hours.

"Excuse me," He politely said, "I'm here to visit someone. She was admitted-"

"Visiting hours are over, sir. Family only." Said a short young woman.

"I'm her boyfriend. I'm the only family she has." He said, half lying. He had no idea if Sara had any family, but he knew she didn't have any in Vegas.

She looked at him, a questionable look on her face. "Fine," she said at last, "what's the patient's name?"

"Sara Sidle." He watched her type Sara's name into the computer. She gave him the room and floor number, and he was off to the nearest elevator. It didn't take him long to find her room.

He poked his head inside. It was dark, but he could make everything out easily. Sara was asleep in her bed, clutching two little bears. He walked in, and pulled a chair up close to her bed. He grabbed her hand and gave it a squeeze.

"Sara?" He whispered, "it's Grissom. Can you wake up for me?"

He turned on the lamp that was beside her bed. The sudden light scared her, and her eyes fluttered open. She looked around the room until her eyes met Grissom's.

"How are you feeling?" He asked, rubbing his thumb over her hand.

"Better." She yawned. "My hand still hurts," she lifted her left hand for him to see, "but other than that, I'm fine."

As gently as possible, he grabbed her left hand and kissed it.

"Now," he began, his eyebrows raised, "who are they?" He pointed to the teddy's.

"Gifts from Nick and Warrick." Sara laughed.

He examined each one as if it was one of his experiments.

"So," he said, braking the silence, "how was the ultrasound?"

"I can't describe it," Sara said, sighing, "I remember my mom telling me when I was young what it would be like, seeing your child for the first time, hearing it's heart beat, but…" she let out another content sigh, "nothing can prepare you for it."

"I wish you could have been there," Sara said after a moment, giving his hand a gentle squeeze.

"I do, too."

"I know it won't be the same, but," she reached for the photos, "the nurse took several pictures."

His eyes widened. She handed him the pictures, mentally deciding not to tell him about the twins. She wanted to see the look on his face when he finally noticed.

He looked at the first one, it's arms and legs were extended. It looked so tiny, so fragile, so _real. _Sara was right. Nothing could have prepared him for this. He kept the same amazed look on his face until he reached the third to last photo. His eyes widened and his smile faded.

"There's two," he gasped in a low voice, looking up at Sara. She nodded, and forced herself to keep eye contact with him.

"We're having twins, Griss." She smiled, tears slid down her cheeks. _God, Griss, please don't take back your promise…_

"Twins…" He breathed. He looked back down at the pictures. He stared at them for a long moment, then looked back up at Sara.

"This doesn't change anything, does it?" He asked.

His words stunned her. "What do you mean?"

"Now that you're going to have twins…Everything we've planned on doing is going to be _twice _as difficult. You're not having a baby anymore, you're having _two. _I-"

"Griss," she stopped him, holding his face in her hands, "_we _are having twins."

Understanding, he leaned forward and kissed her. To some, her answer would have gone undetected. But Grissom heard it loud and clear.

They were still in this together.

XX

After what felt like weeks-when it was only three days- Sara could finally let out of the hospital. She didn't get why they kept her their so long, but she was thankful when Catherine arrived to give her a ride home. After changing into the cloths Catherine had brought for her, Sara had one more thing she wanted to do before she left.

"Greg?"

Greg opened his eyes, even though he already knew who the voice belonged to. He just wanted to make sure he wasn't dreaming.

"Sara?"

"Hi," she said shyly, rising from her chair and walking over to him.

"I thought you got hurt, too." He said, his voice tired and hoarse

"I did," she admitted, trying to keep the images of the explosion out of her mind, "but I'm fine. I wanted to see you before I went home."

They both paused for a moment.

"You didn't lose it, did you?" He asked slowly.

"Lose what?"

"Your baby,"

Her smile faded completely. "How did you…?"

"I heard Catherine tell the paramedics," he admitted.

She closed her eyes and let out a frustrated sigh. She wasn't mad at him, or at Catherine-she was only trying to help, and Greg only overheard her. But what if someone else overheard her? Or Greg accidentally ran his mouth? "No," she finally said, looking back at him, "I didn't."

"I won't tell anyone." He said, seeing the frustrated look on her face.

"Thanks," she whispered. She gently leaned down and hugged him, whispering, "I hope you get better soon."

"Thanks,"

She grabbed her bag, and smiled at him one last time over her shoulder before she exited the room. Her ride home with Catherine was mostly quiet, as she'd hoped it would be. It aloud her to think. She thought about everything that had happened in the past few weeks, about how crazy it was. She thought about what the next few weeks would be like, how crazy they would probably be. She wondered how she was going to make it through all of this. _Remember what Grissom told you. You won't go through this alone._

"Well, we're hear," Catherine said, pulling into Sara's apartment complex.

"Oh," Sara said, looking up, "thanks, Cath."

"When are you coming back to work?" Catherine asked.

"Two more days," Sara groaned, rolling her eyes. She knew that she was going to have to take time off in a few months, so she wanted to work as much as possible before then.

"Don't worry," Catherine assured her, not even attempting to hide her smile, "it'll fly by."

"I hope so," Sara sighed as she got out of the car, "Bye, Catherine."

"Bye, Sara."

XX

Sara had been home for barely an hour when she found herself pacing in her living room, struggling to find something to do. She'd showered, that helped pass the time. She'd re-bandaged her hand, which didn't take very long. She'd scanned through the channels on her TV and nothing caught her interest. She'd ordered two new pregnancy book off of her computer-both made specifically for women expecting twins-and only managed to kill ten minutes. There was no point in trying to call her coworkers, she figured they'd be packed with her gone and no one in the DNA lab. She pulled her damp hair back into a ponytail, sighing in frustration. _This is why I never take days off…_

A knock at her door brought her from her thoughts. Confused, she slowly walked over to the door and looked out the peep hole, hoping it was someone she could just brush off. She was wearing a tank top and flannel pajama pants, so she wasn't exactly dressed for a visitor.

"Catherine?" She asked, opening the door. "What are you doing here?"

"Lindsey's at school," Catherine explained, "and my mother is out with her friends. I figured you would be just as bored as I was."

Normally, Sara would rather sort her socks then spend a day with Catherine. But lately, that feeling seemed to disappear. She knew it was because of her pregnancy, but she didn't care. It was nice to talk to a woman for a change.

"So, what did you expect to do _here_?" Sara asked, opening the door wider so Catherine could come in. "Other than give me parental advice."

"Well," Catherine said in a sing-song voice, "that is a good idea, but it's not why I'm here."

"Oh?"

"Do you want to go baby shopping?" Catherine said so fast Sara almost didn't understand her.

Sara was speechless. _I'd have to tell her I'm having twins if I say yes, _was the first thought that came into her head. It wasn't that Catherine's offer had shocked her, it just felt…too soon. She didn't even know the sex of either of her unborn children! But, then again, she didn't know _anything_ about baby shopping…

"Um. S-sure, but-" She paused and took a deep breath, "I think that whatever we get should be doubled."

"What do you mean? We'll get things for both boys and girls, since-"

"No, that's not what I mean…" She trailed off, why was this so hard to say? "I'm having twins." She said in a low, shy voice.

"Oh…" Catherine said, completely shocked. There was a long pause before she spoke again. "w-well in that case, I guess we should only buy a few things."

"Why?"

"You don't want to by to many things for boys and find out you're having girls, or vise versa."

Sara nodded, getting it. _Maybe today wont be so bad after all…_

XX

It was now about six in the afternoon. Catherine had left a few hours prior to pick up Lindsey from school. She had enjoyed her time with Catherine, and had all sorts of things for when the babies arrived.

"How was your day, Griss?" She asked Grissom, who had arrived moments earlier.

"Better than the past few," he sighed in a tired voice.

Sara nodded, understanding. He'd been very busy since the explosion; with the Sheriff, Ecklie, and Robert Carvallo all expecting so many things from him, Sara knew he was incredibly happy to be home with her, and away from the stresses that the lab sometimes brought them.

"That's good," she smiled. "Do you want to see the things Cath and I bought?"

He didn't respond. "Grissom?" She tried. Nothing. It was like he couldn't even hear her…

"Grissom!"

He jumped and stared at her, wide eyed. "Are you listening to me?"

"I'm sorry, Sara." He sighed, rubbing his eyes. Her heart went out to him. _I don't think he's gotten more than two hours of sleep since the explosion, _Sara thought, noticing the dark circles under his eyes.

"Come on," she said, taking his hand in hers, "lets go lay down for a while?"

"That would be lovely."

XX

Catherine had been right. Her two days off flew by and she was back at work, waiting in the break room for everyone to arrive. The lab looked so different. The DNA lab was nearly gone, and some of the surrounding labs were either damaged or non-usable. It felt so strange.

"Sara, glad to see you're back!"

Sara turned around to Nick and Warrick entering the break room. "Hi, guys." She smiled, waiting for them to sit down. "Have you seen Catherine?" Nick asked, "she's supposed to be coming back today."

"She and Grissom are already on a case." Sara answered, "and from what I heard, a high-profile one."

"Really?" Warrick asked, eyebrows raised in interest.

"An officer was shot during a bank robbery," Sara said, looking down at her hands, "I don't know-" all three of their phones beeped before she could continue. They all received the same message from Grissom:

_ALL HANDS ON DECK. DET. LOCKWOOD SHOT AND KILLED._

XX

**There was more, but it was getting way to long, so I shortened it a bit. Please review!**

**TBC!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Note: I noticed two things. 1: People want more Grissom in on the relationship, which is understandable. I will say I haven't put him in as much as I should have. So, this chapter is going to center more around Grissom, and I added some much needed fluff at the end of the chapter. 2: People are bummed about the team thinking that Hank is the baby daddy. Again, understandable. That is going to change, too. But, only one person will find out at a time (over a long period of time). I hope you all continue to read this, because I sure love writing it.**

**Just a heads up: School is starting again in a few weeks, so I'm going to do my best to update before and after then. Yay for ninth grade…Not.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing, all mistakes are mine. Some lines are barrowed from/inspired by scenes from the episodes 'Forever', 'Play with Fire' and 'Inside the Box'**

**Chapter 6:**

The crime scene was a mess. Broken glass, bullet casings, witnesses scattered all over the place, police cars with bullet holes in them…

And that was only upstairs.

Downstairs had blown out deposit boxes, with the contents scattered on the floor. While the others had left hours ago-while there was still day light-Nick and Sara remained. Nick was working on finding out where the bullets that were in the police cars (and Lockwood) came from, while Sara was downstairs, sorting evidence and fitting the safety deposit boxes back into their original slots. She had finally finished when Catherine and Grissom returned.

"Wow," Catherine said as they approached, "almost looks good as new. Kind of."

"This was the epitome of precession," Sara said, her voice obviously tired.

"The outer rim of boxes sustained the most damage. The intent, was not to blow out the twenty-three surrounding boxes, but to preserve the sanctity of the center box, box 729, it's history, it's the only thing that's gone."

"That's the box they were after," Catherine agreed.

"And we still don't know what was inside." Grissom spoke up.

"It must be pretty important," Sara yawned, "or else they wouldn't have tried so hard to get it."

They both stared at her for a moment. "Why don't you take a break?" Catherine suggested.

"Go home and get some rest, Sara. You've been here all day." Grissom said.

"No, I'm fine-" she fought another yawn, "really."

"It's eleven p.m.," Grissom noted, looking at his watch, "you can come back at eight."

Sara sighed, knowing that was the best offer she'd get. "Fine." She huffed.

"No earlier than eight." Grissom warned over his shoulder.

"I know, I know." Sara said as she walked up the stairs.

"Wow," Catherine giggled once Sara was out of ear shot, "you're acting worse than you did when _I_ was pregnant."

"Well, you weren't having twins."

The moment he's said it he realized he'd slipped up. He was aware that Catherine already knew about the twins, but she didn't know that _he _knew. "How'd you know she was having twins?" She asked, facing him.

He paused before answering. "She told me the other day… Said she might have to go on a maternity leave a little earlier than she first expected."

"I know she hates that." She joked, returning her gaze to the safety deposit boxes.

_That was a close one._

He really needed to be more careful with his words. He suddenly realized that they wouldn't be able to keep their relationship a secret as long as they'd hoped.

XX

Sara drive home was a blur. She didn't realize how tired she was until she opened her apartment door. She dropped her purse, not caring where it landed, all she could think about was crawling into bed. Once she made it to her bedroom, she removed her jeans and slid under the covers. She was asleep within seconds.

She woke up to the sound of her phone ringing. Upon opening her eyes, she noticed that the sun was up again. "Hello?" She answered groggily.

"_Hi,_ _Sara, it's Grissom_."

"Hi," she replied, rubbing her eyes with her free hand. He sounded oddly relieved. "Is everything alright?" She asked.

"_I just called to make sure everything was okay with _you_. I told you that you could come back at eight, and it's almost nine-thirty_."

"What?" She shrieked, looking at her alarm clock. She through the blanket off of her, and nearly ran into the bathroom. "Thanks for calling, Griss, but I need to get ready. See you when I get there!" She hung up before he had a chance to reply.

XX

"Uhg," Catherine sighed, twirling in her chair, "what is up with this bank manager? We've been waiting forever." She turned and looked at Grissom, who seemed as though he hadn't paid her statement any attention.

"Hey!" She said, spooking him. _Did he not hear me? Or is he not listening? _"How long have we known each other?" She tried.

"In days, months, or years?" He said, pursing his lips.

"I'm being serious." She said, her tone darkening. He squinted his eyes and moved his head a little closer.

"Can you hear me?" She asked, her anger rising.

Before he could answer, the bank manager finally came in. Grissom knew exactly what was happening to him, but he hoped that their was some chance he was wrong. He needed to see a doctor. Soon.

XX

"I wish you'd come to me sooner." Doc. Robbins sighed, backing away from Grissom.

"The contusion's pretty far along. Why'd you wait?"

"I…hoped it would go away." Grissom answered.

"Doesn't your mother have this condition?"

"Yeah. It's hereditary." He watched Robbins give him a slightly baffled look. "I know, I wasn't _rational._"

"Look Gil," Robbins said, his voice low, "I'm not gonna preach to you, you came to me. But, doctor to doctor, there's a chance that the bone deposits have spread into the inner ear, in which case, your hearing loss will eventually be permanent."

He allowed the news to sink in a little before continuing, "if I were you, I'd schedule surgery as soon as possible."

In that moment, something hit Grissom like a speeding truck. "Thanks, Al," He said, rising from his chair and exiting the morgue. His hearing condition was hereditary, which meant that there was a fifty percent chance that one of-or possibly both-his unborn children could develop it as well.

He needed to talk with Sara.

XX

"The eyelash Warrick found in the black grease paint, I extracted the DNA, ran it, and CODIS gave me a, uh…" He shook his now empty food cup upside-down, "Mongolian beef."

"I'm sorry," Sara asked, chewing her food, "what does that mean?"

"It means he got nothing." Warrick said as his food slipped out of his chopsticks.

"Here," Greg said, handing him a simpler pair of chopsticks, "try these big guy. Training wheels."

"Thanks."

"Hey guys," Nick butted in, his mouth full of food, "guys, lets focus on the robbery."

"Grissom? What do you think?" Catherine asked.

"I think we're giving these guys to much credit." Grissom admitted, staring at the fortune cookie that he held in in hand, "they're experts at robbing banks, not experts at concealing evidence."

"Well, unless the answer is in that fortune cookie, what's the plan?" Catherine asked.

"You ever wonder how the fortune gets inside the cookie?" Grissom asked. He knew, and he was sure one of them did. But would they understand what he was getting at?

"I know!" Nick blurted out, his mouth still full of food.

"Of course you do." Sara teased.

Nick wiped his mouth before continuing. "The cookie comes out of the pres like a tortilla, then some lady puts the fortune in the center of the dough, folds the dough around a piece of medal, then folds it again."

Grissom grinned, "that's the answer."

As he rose and left, he left a room full of confused faces. When he returned, only Catherine remained.

"I got a print."

XX

He thought it was over. Hell, Catherine did too. The print gave them a name, a picture, and evidence that linked him to the crime. But, when they went to Robert Rubio's house, all they found was safety deposit box 729, a rainbow colored thread and a drop of blood inside it. A few hours later, they got a call out to the desert.

"I think this is the origin of the word: Termination." Brass admitted, staring down at the three dead bodies. "There's the corporate way, and the way of the gun."

"High powered rifle, close range, visible gun powder." Grissom noted, pointing to the bullet wound in one of the victim's chest. "This guy got it in the chest, too." He said, pointing to another victim. "And this one took it in the back." He pointed to the last body.

After checking the victims clothes, they discovered that each victim was carrying a gun, but none had a chance to fire. "So they weren't tied up, and are still armed." Catherine noted. _Why didn't they fire back?_

"Well they didn't fly here, where's their car?" Grissom asked, looking around the dry landscape.

"Well it's not a dump-job," Catherine assured, "killer drove them here, killed them and then drove away."

"They knew their attacker." Brass added.

As Catherine crouched down to get a better look at the body, something in the distance caught Grissom's eye. It was something caught in a nearby dead bush. The wind was blowing it through some of the empty branches. Grissom hurried over, not wanting it to blow away in the wind. As he got closer, he noticed that it was a rainbow colored scarf.

"Where's he going?" Brass asked.

"Lets just hope he stops," Catherine said, rising to follow him.

Using his tweezers, he grabbed the scarf. Catherine used her gloved hands to hold onto it.

"Familiar?" Grissom asked, nodding his head towards the scarf.

"Blood stained, rainbow colored thread, same that was in the safety deposit box." Catherine answered. "Those guys are definitely the bank robbers."

"Where's the forth guy?" Brass asked, a hint of anger in his voice.

"The guys who's rapidly becoming a mass-murderer." Grissom replied.

"Rob Rubio." Brass added.

XX

The case had just taken a turn. They'd discovered what the stain in the scarf was: scissors. A long pair of scissors with RAMPART etched in the side of them. Catherine had tried calling Sam Braun, the owner of the Rampart and a good friend of hers, but after three tries and no answers, she was infuriated.

"He's not returning any of my phone calls," she growled, slipping her arms into the sleeves or her brown leather jacket, "I need to confront this 'Sam Braun' business once and for all. I'll drive."

"I'm not going with you," he said reluctantly.

"What do you mean?" She asked, closing her locker.

A moment of silence passed between them. "I'm scheduled for surgery at Desert Palm." He admitted.

She stared at him for a long moment before finally breathing out, "_Surgery_?"

She walked over to him, just a few inches from him. "You're hearing?" She whispered.

He nodded, "yep."

She paused again, looking down at her feet, then up at him again. "I'm sorry."

"I'm not," he said, chipper "it has to be done."

"What can I do?"

"Nothing, I'm fine." He turned on his heels. "Take care of the case," he said over his shoulder.

Baffled, she called out to him. "That's it?"

"That's it." He clarified. "Good luck."

XX

Grissom was almost to his car when a familiar face caught his eye. It was Sara. _Now's my chance._

"Hey, Sara?" He called, walking over to her.

"Yeah," she said, shutting her car door.

He looked around, making sure no one was to close. "There's something you need to know."

Her heart sank to her stomach. The tone in his voice told her whatever he was about to tell her wasn't good. He took a deep breath. "I'm…losing my hearing," he started. She gasped, a horrified look crossing her face. Her hands covered her gaping mouth.

"But," he quickly continued, "I'm going in for surgery at Desert Palm tonight to get it fixed.

She stared at him for a long moment. His heart pounded in his chest. _Oh, no, she's mad at me._

Finally she spoke again. "Why didn't you tell me?" She asked in the most pitiful voice he'd ever heard her say.

"I just scheduled it today," he answered, knowing that wasn't what she was truly asking.

"No," she shook her head and looked down at her feet, hiding her tears, "why didn't you tell me you were losing your hearing?"

"Because-" he paused, not entirely sure what to say. "Because I hoped it would go away. I didn't tell anyone, Sara. I was afraid-" he took another deep breath, lowing his voice, "I was afraid that it might effect what we have, and that I might have passed it on to the twins, and you that would be mad at me for not telling you sooner. I know I should have told you sooner, I honestly meant to. I was just…I'm sorry Sara."

When she looked back up at him, it broke his heart. A mixed look a hurt, sorrow, and even a little anger stared back at him. He prepared for her to yell and scream at him, maybe even hit him, but it didn't happen. Instead, she wrapped her arms around his neck and buried her face into his chest. "I understand," was all she said.

And she did. She understood that Grissom-even thought he would never admit it-was afraid that people would see him differently if they knew about his hearing problem. Take pity on him, even. She had her own secrets, so she knew how he must have felt.

But what made her just a little bit angry was that he didn't tell _her. _Did he not trust her enough? She knew that Grissom would be there whenever she needed him, did he not know that she would do the same? It hurt her to think that he might not trust her. What if-

_Now isn't the time to talk about it, _she decided.

"Don't be sorry." She whispered.

He knew that they were hidden by the cars, so no one could see them. He planted a kiss into her hair. "I'll drive you there," she said, looking back up at him. He knew better than to argue, and handed her the keys.

XX

Sara pulled up to the front of the hospital. She looked over at Grissom, a sad look on her face. "I'll be fine, Sara." He said, kissing her on the cheek. He wiped the single tear that slid down her cheek. "Give me a key to you're house." She suddenly said.

"What?" He asked, baffled.

"I want to make it ready for when you come home." She assured him.

"Sara, you don't have to do that." He said. He wasn't sure of how clean he'd left his place…

"I want to."

Letting out a sigh of defeat, he reached into his back pocket and handed her his keys. For the first time since he'd talked to her in the parking lot, she smiled.

"I'll be waiting for you when you wake up." She said just before he got out of the car.

XX

Grissom sat alone in his little hospital room. The nurse had just left, telling him that they were preparing his surgery room for him. He couldn't stop thinking about Sara. She was invading his personal space; his 'cave' as Catherine had once called it, but he knew she was only trying to help. He understood that, but, he'd been so used to being alone that he wasn't sure he was ready for something like this.

But, even more than that, he wanted so bad to be with her. He knew she was worried about him, and he hated to see her suffer in any way. _I should have told her sooner, _he thought, _that way we could have prepared for something like this._ He was so distracted that he didn't even see Catherine walk up to his room.

"Hey," she greeted, leaning on the wall. He jumped.

"What are you doing here?" he asked, his cheeks flushing a bright red. All his had on were his boxers and a hospital gown. He wasn't exactly dressed to entertain guests.

"Just wanted to see you," she laughed, "I didn't want you to go in without…wishing you good luck."

The nurse returned to the room, rolling a wheel chair. He stood and walked over to Catherine. "Thank you," he breathed, "for being here." Her eyes were teary as she wrapped her arms around his neck. He looked over at the nurse and waved her off. "I don't need that," he said, pointing to the wheel chair. Catherine watched him walk down the hall, and wave at her one last time before turning the corner.

XX

Sara arrived at Grissom's house less than thirty minutes after she dropped him off at the hospital. She knew that he was probably very uncomfortable with her being in his house. Without him there, at least. But she wanted it to be perfect for when he came home. She paused before entering. _Is this crossing the line? _She though, _no, or else he wouldn't have given me the key. _With that thought fresh in her mind, she turned the key and entered.

It was very clean, as she'd expected. But there were some things she could touch up. Her investigator instincts kicked in, and she began to work.

The first thing she did was dust. Everything. She dusted the tables, his desk, his (few) picture frames, everything that could have possibly have dust on it. Next, she swept and vacuumed all the floors. She touch up things in every room of the house until it felt _almost _perfect.

Almost.

She remembered him commenting on a few candles she had in her apartment. Instead of driving all the way back to her apartment to get them, she went to the store she got them from and bought some for him. She set them in different parts of his house so she could light them once he came home.

She pulled out her cell phone and checked the time. She'd dropped him off at the hospital two hours ago. She put her hand on her growing abdomen.

"Daddy is in surgery by now." She whispered.

XX

_Two hours later…_

Sara sat in the waiting room at the hospital. Once she felt that everything was perfect, she'd left Grissom's house. She'd been sitting in the waiting room for roughly two hours. She walked up to the front desk, and informed the woman working it who she was waiting for, and who she was.

"He's still in surgery, honey." She said, "but it shouldn't be long before he's out. I think you'll be able to see him in about another two hours."

Sighing, she returned to her seat. She hated hospitals. They brought back painful memories. But it was for Grissom, and if she had to she'd wait in that hospital forever.

_But not without getting something to eat, _she thought as her stomach let out a loud growl.

She drove to a nearby convenient store and grabbed a candy bar, a few bags of chips and a bottle of water. She's only managed to kill about thirty minutes. She ate her food in the car, and returned to her seat in the waiting room.

She read magazine after magazine until there were none left. She'd been reading them for so long that her eyes burned. She wasn't even aware that she'd closed them felt the nurse shake her awake.

"Ma'am, your boyfriend is out of surgery. He's asking for you."

XX

She had told him she would be waiting for him, but he didn't think she would sit in the waiting room for the entire procedure. So when he asked the nurse if anyone was waiting for him, he didn't expect her to say, "yes, a young woman has been waiting in the lobby for quite some time. A Sara…something. Would you like me to get her for you?"

At first, he wasn't sure if he wanted _anyone _visiting him at the moment. He'd only woken up ten minutes ago. But when the nurse told him that Sara had been waiting for close to five hours, he couldn't help but feel guilty. "Yes," he said after a moment, "I'd like to see her."

He spotted her probably before she spotted him. _She looks tired_, he noted When she finally saw him, he noticed a nervous look on her face. Even though his ears covered in gauze, he heard her say her thanks to the nurse, and she pulled her chair beside him. He reached over and took her hand in his.

"Hi," she smiled shyly as the nurse shut the door.

"Hi," he smiled back, his voice raspy.

"Is this going to become a regular thing?" She asked.

"What do you mean?" he asked, taken aback.

"Us visiting each other in the hospital at two in the morning." She giggled, knowing that she confused him.

"Oh. I hope not." He grinned.

There was a pause before either of them spoke again. "When are they letting you out?" She asked, rubbing her thumb over his hand. Something he'd done to her many times before.

"Tomorrow," he sighed.

"When can you come back to work?"

"Not for at least a week." he grumbled.

"Aw," Sara mock-cried, not even trying to hide her laughter, "poor baby."

He gave her a look, and she continued to laugh. He loved seeing her smile.

"I'll miss you," she said when she finally stopped laughing.

"I'll miss you, too."

Another few moments of silence passed between them. "Sara," Grissom finally said, "I'm really sorry I didn't tell you about this sooner. I'm sorry I hurt you."

"Yeah, you did." Sara broke eye contact with him and let go of his hand. "Do you remember what you told me a few weeks ago, after that case with the two dead teens; when the girl's mother watched her daughter and her boyfriend die?"

"Yes," he said.

_"Sara," Grissom interrupted, knowing where she was going. "Don't think, for a single second, that you'll be anything like that woman. You'll be a great mother." He smiled at her, hoping it would help._

_It didn't._

_"But what if I'm not?" Sara cried, her voice pitiful, "what if I can't handle it?"_

_"You have me, Sara." He said, sliding next to her, holding her close, "I'll do everything in my power to make sure that that baby, and it's mother, are happy. We'll get through anything and everything that happens to us." He waited for her to look him in the eye before continuing._

_"No matter what happens, Sara," he said, "I will always be right here, ready to help you."_

"Well.." Sara said shyly, "I feel the same way."

He raised an eye brow.

"If anything happens to your hearing," she continued, "or if it does get passed on to the twins, I'll help you through it, just like you said you'd do for me." She took his hand again, "you need to trust me, Grissom."

"I do trust you, Sara." He assured her, giving her hand a squeeze. "I'm just not used to sharing so much of my life with someone. I've been alone for so long…I guess I just forgot."

Sara was taken aback. She had expected an apology, but nothing like this. She knew he was a private person; she was too, but she didn't know he was _this _private. Her emotions were getting the better of her, and a few tears slid down her cheeks.

"Damn it," she forced out a laugh, wiping her tears. "Being pregnant is so freaking _emotional_!"

"But," Grissom said, resting his hand on her stomach, "it'll be worth it."

"I know," she said. She looked down at where his hand rested, and laid hers on top of it. "What do you want them to be?" She asked quietly.

"What?"

"Do you want boys, girls, or one of each?"

"It's not like you can control it." He said.

"I know that," she said, flicking his arm, "I just want to know."

He was quiet for a long moment. He remembered when Catherine had had Lindsey, and how much fun he had with her. He didn't know what it was like to have boys, so he felt as though he couldn't choose.

"All I want," he finally said, "is for them to healthy. Nothing else really matters."

"Good answer," she grinned form ear to ear.

They stayed like that and talked for what felt like forever, but was only an hour and a half. It was getting close to four in the morning, and both of them were struggling to stay awake.

"I wish I didn't have to leave." She gave him a sad smile.

"You don't have to," Grissom said, squeezing her hand again.

"Grissom, I haven't slept since yesterday night, I'm-" as if on cue, she yawned, "I'm exhausted."

"I better write this down," Grissom joked, "Sara Sidle admits she's tired."

"Shut up," she laughed, pinching his arm.

"Make me," he smiled mischievously, knowing what she'd do.

"Fine." She said, rising from her chair and kissing him hard on the lips. Their kiss lasted until they both needed air.

"I'll come see you in the morning." She breathed.

"I look forward to it."

XX

Sara slept better than she thought she would. She got home at about four in the morning and went straight to bed. She got up at nine, showered, ate, and drove to the hospital. _I sure hope he's awake, _she thought as she entered the building. She walked up to his room and found his door shut. She, out of habit, knocked.

"Come in," came Grissom's voice.

"Hi," she smiled as she walked in, the door clicking shut behind her. He was eating food that one of the nurses had brought him. By the look on his face, she guessed that it wasn't very good.

"I take it it's not very good." She made a skewed face and pointed at his food, scooting her chair next to his bed.

"Horrible," he conformed, "but it's all I have, so it'll do."

She remembered all the times she had been forced to eat hospital food. Sometimes it wasn't that bad, but more than often she'd rather go hungry than eat it. She remembered when she had to eat it just last week. She shivered at the thought. Apparently they hadn't known she was a vegetarian…

"What time are they letting you out?" She asked, wanting the thought of the horrible food out of her mind.

"Around noon. They want to check a few things and take the bandages off." He pointed to one of his ears.

"Does it hurt?" She asked, remembering how bad her hand used to hurt.

"No." He lied.

She gave him a look, raising her brow. "A little," he tried. She crossed her arms over her chest, not buying it.

"Fine. They're _throbbing. _Happy?"

"I just needed an excuse to do this," she said as she leaned forward and kissed his cheek. "Did that help?"

"Why don't you try again?" He joked, propping himself up to where he was fully sitting up.

Sara; who was now at a much lower level, laughed. She stood, leaned forward and kissed him again, this time directly on the lips. He pulled her in closer, so close that she was nearly in his lap, twirling one of his fingers in her hair. She smiled widely against his lips. They were making out like love-struck teenagers, she thought.

"Griss-" she pulled away slightly, "the…door-"

"Don't worry-" he kissed her again, "the nurse…won't be back…for at least an hour." He breathed between kisses.

"But-" she pulled away, this time a little further, "what if they come back?"

"They'll knock," was all he said before pulling her in again.

Sara giggled, wrapping her arms around his neck; careful not to touch his ears. She couldn't believe how childish they were being! She felt one of his hands tug at the hem of her jacket, and she quickly removed it, throwing on he chair.

Just as the thought of locking the door came into her mind, they heard the gasp of an all-to-familiar voice, causing them both to jump back, and even gasp themselves.

"What in the Hell is going on?"

XX

**I know, I'm evil! But what would a story be without cliffhangers? I wanted to get this up quickly, because I'm going on vacation again. This time only for a few days, though, not an entire week. Sorry for the evil cliffhanger, please be nice in the reviews! **

**TBC!**


	7. Chapter 7

**Note: The reviews were great, and yes, I'm sorry for the evil cliffhanger. I'll try to make up for it! I'm also really sorry for the long delay, I've been unbelievably busy and had a bit of a writers block. **

**Disclaimer: I own nothing, all mistakes are mine. Some lines are barrowed from/inspired by scenes from the episode "You've Got Male," and most of the other episodes previously credited.**

**Chapter 7:**

Just as the thought of locking the door came into her mind, they heard the gasp of an all-to-familiar voice, causing them both to jump back, and even gasp themselves.

"What in the Hell is going on?"

Sara literally fell back into her chair, whilst Grissom could only stare at their intruder. Both of them were frozen, their faces flushing a deep shade of red. Sara looked up at Grissom, who had by now pulled his legs back onto his bed and was propped up against his pillow.

XX

_Five minutes earlier…_

Catherine walked as quickly as possible into the hospital. She felt incredibly guilty for not visiting Grissom directly after his surgery, but Warrick had taken the night shift CSI's-and Greg-out to a bar, celebrating the arrest of Rob Rubio.

Well, most of the night shift.

They hadn't asked about Grissom; he'd turned them down nearly every time they asked him to go somewhere with them, but Greg did ask about Sara.

"She told me she wasn't feeling well," Catherine had lied.

Thankfully, they boys had left it at that, and they enjoyed their night out. Catherine had been exhausted, so she'd gone straight home. After she'd taken Lindsey to school, she remembered Grissom's surgery, and wanted to check up on him

"Can you give me the room number of Gilbert Grissom? I'm his sister." She asked the woman at the from desk. The woman rattled off the room and floor number, forgetting to mention that Grissom already had a guest.

As she approached his room, she considered whether or not she should knock. Figuring he'd be asleep, she decided against it. She turned the handle on the door, and entered the room. The sight before her made her stop dead in her tracks.

XX

Their was a long, and very awkward silence. Catherine stood at the-now closed-door, her arms crossed over her chest, the look of a scolding mother on her face, her eyes darting from Sara to Grissom.

"Catherine," Grissom finally spoke, "what are you doing here?"

"I…was…coming to check in on you," Catherine said, obviously surprised.

"Can you please explain to me what just happened?"

"Catherine," Sara piped, "I-I'll explain. Everything."

"_Everything_?" Catherine asked, confused, "are you saying…that, there's _more_?"

Sara nodded, biting her lower lip. She straightened herself in her chair, and took a deep breath.

"You remember when you took me out to that bar, right after Hank's case?" She asked.

"Uh-huh," Catherine nodded.

"Well, after you left, Grissom showed up-" she broke eye contact with Catherine and stole a quick glance at Grissom, and began playing with her hands, "and…we got _pretty _drunk-"

"Oh, no," Catherine gasped, taking a small step back, "don't…tell me…you two-" the look on Sara's face was all she needed.

Catherine shivered. She covered her eyes with on of her hands, massaging them with her thumb and index finger. "Wait," she suddenly said, opening her eyes, "does this mean…that, the twins are…"

Sara reluctantly nodded.

Catherine fell back onto the door. "What were you _thinking_?" She asked, her anger rising.

"Cath, please, don't-" Sara tried, her emotions beginning to get the better of her again.

"Do you realize how much trouble you'll be in?" Catherine interrupted, her attention on Grissom.

"Catherine, you can't tell _anyone, _about this." Grissom finally spoke.

That was enough to silence her. She looked at her boss. There was a look on his face that she had never seen on him before. He was begging. In all the years she'd known him, she'd never seen Gil Grissom beg for anything. And even though it wasn't obvious, she knew he was afraid. After a few more moments of staring, her eyes flickered to her co-worker. She was begging, as well, but Catherine saw many other things. Fear, worry, and even regret.

She let out a frustrated sigh, closing her eyes. "I wont tell anyone, you two are professionals, and I know that you'll leave your personal life out of the lab. " she heard them both let out relieved sighs, "you will, right?"

"We have for the past nine weeks." Grissom said as a matter-of-factly.

Catherine rolled her eyes before continuing, "but, I can't believe that you would lie about something this big, Sara. What if someone had told Hank?"

Sara looked down at her hands again. "I don't know." She said in the most child-like voice as possible.

"If one of the guys asks," Catherine reluctantly began, "I really think one of-or both of you- should tell them the truth."

"What!" Sara retorted. "It's not even any of their business."

"Okay, then, fine. Don't tell them, let them speculate. But can you imagine what Warrick or Nick, or even _Brass_ would do if they thought it was Hank?"

The image of Nick and Warrick cornering Hank in some dark ally came into her mind. Warrick was popping his knuckles, and Nick had a base-ball bat…the end result wasn't pretty. She could definitely see Brass pulling a gun on him.

She shook the image out of her head. "It's not that easy, Catherine. It's not like we could just drag them into Grissom's office and tell them what happened that night."

Catherine rubbed her forehead, and looked down at her shoes, muttering something that nor Sara or Grissom could hear. "You know," Catherine started, "they're going to find out eventually."

Sara's hands fidgeted in her lap. She couldn't help but feel guilty, for a lot of things. She was the reason Grissom was in this situation; if she'd just let him leave when he'd wanted to that day, they wouldn't be here right now.

_Grissom smiled back, and got up to leave._

"_Wait!" Sara called, Grissom turned and faced her. "Why don't you stay? Shift's over." She pursed her lips, pointing to the extra seat by tilting her head. Smiling, Grissom walked over and sat down. "I'd like that," he smiled. God, she loved that smile._

_Look where that smile's gotten me now, _she thought bitterly.

If she and Grissom had decided to be honest, she wouldn't have had to lie to Catherine in the first place.

_"How far along are you?" Catherine asked in a voice just over a whisper._

_"Eight weeks." Sara said, biting her bottom lip._

_"So…it's…"_

_"Hank's." Sara said in a voice she herself almost couldn't hear, finally looking at Catherine. The look of shock and sympathy on her face almost made her want to tell her the truth._

_Almost._

_"Oh, God…Sara. I'm so sorry."_

_"Just…don't tell anyone? I mean, I know they'll know soon enough, but the only other person who knows is Grissom."_

_"I wont." She put a hand on Sara's shoulder. "If you need anything, _anything_, let me know."_

And what killed her most was something that happened the year before. The call she had made to Hank, asking to go out with him. If she had never called him, none of this would have happened.

_Sara walked into her apartment, setting her keys, purse and coat on the counter. Today's case had really bothered her. _

_One of the victims-Donna Marks-lived the almost the exact same way that she did. She had no social life, ate off of her take-out menus, ordered her cloths and other things on-line…and now she was dead. It sent a shiver down Sara's spine. _

_She picked up her trash can and walked over to her refrigerator. The first thing she did was threw out all of her boxed up take-out Chinese food. Then, after closing the fridge, she removed and threw out all of her take-out menus from the refrigerator's door. Lastly, she walked over to the counter again, and dumped her stack of clothing and home decorating magazines into the-now nearly full-trash can._

_She had to admit that she felt much better. But once she looked at her answering machine, and saw the big fat '0' blinking back at her, she knew that there was one thing that she needed to do._

_She picked up her phone and dialed the number he'd given her a few weeks ago. She paced back and forth as it rang until, finally, he answered._

"_Hello?" Answered the familiar voice of Hank Peddigrew._

"_Hey, it's Sara." She said, smiling as though he was able to see it. _

"_I was, um…thinking-" she mentally kicked herself. _Just say it! _"You wanna go out…somewhere?"_

_There was a long pause. "I thought you'd never ask," he finally said._

_Sara smiled from ear to ear, "Great! What do you want to do?"_

_They talked and planned their 'date' for the next several minutes. When she hung up, she felt wonderful._

"_Are you happy now, Grissom?" She asked to herself, "I finally have a diversion."_

Sara's heart hurt. She always hated lying. If it was something small, she didn't always mind. But with something like this, she wasn't so happy she went with the idea anymore. She hated being lied to, and she hated lying to people who trusted her_. Like Catherine_. It had taken her a long time to win Catherine's trust, and now every bit of that trust was shattered. Catherine had been nothing but good to her since she'd gotten pregnant, and any chance of that happening again was slim-to-none

"C-Catherine?" Sara asked. Catherine only opened an eye.

"I-I'm sorry for lying to you. I know I probably ruined any bit of trust you had in me."

Catherine was a little surprised by the apology, but it was true. _No, it's not, _Catherine thought, frustrated. Even though she felt slightly betrayed, she knew that Sara was only trying to protect Grissom, and he was doing the same. They may have even been trying to protect their unborn children, from the odd looks and stares they might receive in the future.

"No," Catherine said, leaning against the door, "it hurts that you two would lie to me, but I understand why you did it."

Now it was Sara's turn to be caught off guard. She could feel tears stinging in her eyes, she blinked them away. "Thanks, Catherine." She said, straining to hold in a sniffle. Catherine smiled, and walked over to Grissom's bed side. Slowly, he leaned back up. She put a hand on his shoulder.

"I'm sorry for this…whole thing." She said, playfully rolling her eyes.

Grissom blushed slightly. "Me, too."

"What do you want me to tell the guys while you're out?""I'm on medical leave." Grissom answered simply.

Catherine only nodded. She pat him on the shoulder one last time before backing away. He went for the door, but stopped just short of opening it.

"Next time," she began, her tone playful, "you two should _seriously _consider locking the door." And with that she left, leaving two shocked, gaping and blushing faces behind her. They were quiet for a few moments, until they couldn't hold her laughter in any longer. It started as a single chuckle from Sara, but when Grissom heard her, he burst into laughter, causing Sara to do the same. They laughed so hard that it hurt.

But after a few minutes, reality set back in. Catherine was right. Their team would probably find out eventually. Sara knew that, at first, Warrick and Nick; and maybe even Greg, would be angry for not being told the truth in the first place. But once the babies were born, she knew they wouldn't care anymore.

But she also knew that their look on Grissom might change. She knew that each of them held a huge amount of respect for the man. But would they after they knew the truth? At least he hadn't left her, make her take care of things on her own. And for that she was forever grateful.

Perhaps the boys would be, too.

XX

_Later that same day…_

Grissom was sound asleep in his bed, after taking a few painkillers. He'd been surprised after entering his house, finding what Sara had done for him. And he had loved it. But, after only a few minutes of being home, his ears began to throb again. So, after Sara lit a few of her candles in his room, he'd gone to bed, leaving Sara sitting at his kitchen table, alone.

She couldn't stop thinking about what Catherine had said.

"_If one of the guys asks," Catherine reluctantly began, "I really think one of-or both of you- should tell them the truth."_

She put herself in their shoes. Nick and Warrick were like older brothers to her. She wouldn't lie about something like this to her actual brother-if she knew how to contact him, she would have told him-so why should she hide it from them? _Because the father is their boss, _she thought. Greg was almost like an annoying little brother, so the same thing applied. Brass was hard to place, but she knew that he cared about her.

God, how would they react?

Greg would probably be more disgusted than anything. Not at her or Grissom, but…Well, Greg knows how babies are made, and the thought of Grissom doing _that _with her-when he had a crush on her-she just knew would make him sick. _Aw, poor little Greggo, _Sara thought, laughing a little to herself. _The poor thing may even be a little heartbroken, too. _She kidded, even though no one was around to laugh with her. She was only teasing, though, and would never hurt Greg's feelings intentionally. But she also knew that their would be lots, and _lots, _of teasing from him, too. She just hoped that with a little talking-and threatening-that he would eventually stop.

Nick, at first, would most likely be-like Greg-freaked out. Then again, Nick was no-where-_near_ as immature as Greg, so she could be wrong. _He won't be able to look Grissom in the eye for a while, that's for sure, _she thought. She'd have to explain what happened, of course. Sara remembered when Nick had slept with Kristy Hopkins; who was unfortunately a prostitute, and she had been found dead the next morning. He had told Sara that they'd had a 'connection' of some sort, so he'd given in to her and slept with her. Sara was sure that after she told him about what she and Grissom felt, he'd understand.

Warrick would probably be confused. She could picture his eyes growing wide, and his mouth making a huge 'O' shape, the thought made her giggle. But she also knew that the first thing he would do (and probably what they all would do) would be to confront Grissom, and make sure it wasn't some sick prank. She could remember when she first came to Vegas, and how badly she and Warrick got along. _So much has changed between us, _she thought. They down-right hated each other. But after a case involving a cop blamed of pulling over and shooting a man (though he was later proved innocent) they had begun to get along. She was sure he'd be happy.

And last, but certainly not least, Brass. Sara had no doubt in her mind that Brass would be furious with Grissom. He'd be furious with both of them, actually. Brass had (even though neither Sara nor Grissom knew he did) always known that there was _something_ going on between the two of them. Sara always thought that; no, Sara _knew _that Jim Brass put on that he was a big, tough guy. But deep down, he was a big softy, and once her children were born, she knew that he'd spoil them rotten and would never let them out of his sight. But as long as she, Grissom, their children and their friend's were happy, she didn't care.

She had begun to ponder how her _enemies _may react when she heard a loud creaking noise. A few moment later Grissom stepped into view.

"Hi, sleepyhead." Sara cooed, rising from her chair and walking over to him.

"What time is it?" He asked groggily.

She looked back at the clock over the stove. "Almost seven,"

She took his hands and pulled him over to the table. Even when they were both seated, she didn't let go of his hands. "Grissom," she began, looking down at the table, "I've been thinking about what Catherine said. About how us lying hurt her, and…" she trailed off, looking into his eyes.

"I don't want to lie anymore."

Grissom sighed, and remained quiet. Sara's heart beat increased.

"I thought you'd say that." He said at last. "But, Sara, do you know what could happen? If someone overheard, we could lose our jobs. If a suspect's lawyer found out, they would say that our judgment is questionable. I don't want to lie either, honey, but-"

"Grissom, you're over reacting." Sara cut in, "I'm not saying that we should call them into the break room and explain ourselves, I'm saying that if they ask _me, _I don't want to lie to them."

"Sara, it's to risky. Someone could overhear you." Grissom said, his tone sharper than necessary.

"Not if I'm alone with them." Sara replied, her tone just as sharp. She let go of his hands. "I'll only say it if I'm alone with them, like in a car or something."

Grissom opened his mouth to respond, but Sara beat him to it. "Grissom, don't you trust them?"

The question hit him like a speeding truck. Of course he trusted his team! It was _other_ people in the lab that he didn't trust. He didn't trust some of the detectives. He didn't trust some of the lab techs (like Hodges) and he most _certainly_ didn't trust Ecklie. Why didn't Sara understand that?

"Yes, Sara. I trust the team, I really do. It's the other people that I don't trust." He explained. She looked like she was about to reply, but he stopped her. "Sara, do you know how much we're already risking? If-"

"Oh course I do!" She exclaimed, rising from her chair and slamming her fists onto the table, "Do you think we'd still be together if I didn't?"

"That's not what I mean, Sara. What I'm trying to say is that we're already risking so much, I don't want to put are relationship in even _more_ danger by telling the others."

"I know that, but-" she trailed off, huffing, "what if it was you who was being lied to? How would you feel?"

He stopped and thought about it for a moment. She had a point, but…"I would understand why they would do it."

"Damn it, Grissom!" Sara hissed, "why did you have to come up with that stupid idea in the first place! This is _your_ fault!"

Neither of them spoke after that, they just stared at each other. Sara was mentally kicking herself. She'd really screwed things up now. How could she have said that to him? He had only been trying to help her. After what felt like an eternity of staring, Sara finally broke eye contact, staring down at her feet.

"I-I'm sorry, Grissom," she said hastily, walking away from the table, "I-I-I shouldn't have said anything, you were right. It's to risky. I…I-" she quickly walked over to her purse, snatching it from the counter.

"I'll see you later, Grissom." Was all she managed to say before she felt hot tears sliding down her cheeks. She turned her face away from him and headed for the door.

"Sara," Grissom breathed, walking after her. She ignored him and grabbed at the door handle.

"Sara, stop!" He called, grabbing her arm.

Sara tried to jerk her arm free, but he wouldn't let her go. They struggled for a few moments before she finally stopped and look up at him. Her face was already a shade pinker, and her eyes were beginning to puff. The sight made his heart break.

"Sara," he began, his voice low, "I…I'm only trying to protect what we have. What we're _going_ to have." He held her face in his hands, wiping her tears with his thumbs, "I don't want that to go away."

She let out a shaky sigh, closing her eyes. Out of all the things that Grissom expected her to do to him, hugging wasn't one of them. She always managed to surprise him with that.

"I'm sorry," they said in unison, laughing at it after a moment.

"I'll make you a deal," Grissom smiled, tucking a finger under her chin and lifting her head up, "if they haven't found out by the time the twins are born, we'll tell them then. Okay?"

Sara beamed.

He always made her feel like the luckiest woman in the world.

XX

_One week and two days later…_

It was Grissom's first day back at the lab after his surgery. He was thrilled to be back, and, to his surprise, no one had (so far) asked about his leave of absence. But, he did receive several smiles and 'welcome back!'s. Even Sara was smiling when he entered the break room, ready to hand out assignments.

"Nick, Sara, you've got a home robbery," he handed them their slip and rattled off the address. "Oh, and, um…" he called out just as they were leaving the room, "the home owner's…pretty pissed."

"Yay," Sara said sarcastically, cocking her head.

"Warrick, Catherine, assault outside Planet Hollywood. Guy found unconscious beside his car."

"…what about you?" Catherine asked, taking her slip.

"I have a mountain of paperwork on my desk." He sighed, turning on his heels and heading out of the room.

XX

"Aw, no." Nick complained, pulling into the driveway. A scrawny woman with wild, frizzy red and black hair was walking back and forth, from officer to officer, flailing her hands in the air. It was obvious, like Grissom had said, that she was pretty pissed. Nick noted that she had a large cup in her hand, and whatever drink she had inside it was spilling over the top every time she moved her arms.

"_Finally_!" She panted as Sara and Nick approached with their kits in hand. "What the Hell took ya so long?" She had a very strong New York accent, Nick noted. It reminded him of a the girl he'd seen at a about a year ago. The Tony Braun case; she had been his girlfriend. What was her name, again? Jenna, _no_. Jenny, _nope._ Janet, maybe? He couldn't remember.

They ignored her, and continued to walk inside the house. "Has someone already interviewed her?" Sara asked a nearby officer.

"Yes!" She heard from outside, "Detective O'Something over there already did! Can I please go inside my house now?""No, ma'am," Nick said, "you'll contaminate the scene."

He knew she kept yelling and swearing at them, but he ignored her. They entered the house, noting that there was no sign of forced entry. Sara and Nick were both surprised that their was almost no sign of a struggle, other than a drawer from a nearby dresser lying in the middle of the room.

"Hey, I've got a few blood drops on the floor over here," Nick said, swabbing it, "and a little on the edge of the drawer."

"Maybe when the intruder threw it across the room, it grazed his arm." Sara added.

"The home owner's name is Clair Greene," Detective O'Riley said, walking up standing in the doorway, "she says that she came home and found all of her expensive jewelry missing. Claims that her, as of two days ago, ex-boyfriend Jason Hall did it because he was 'out to get her'."

"She might be right," Nick said, snapping several pictures of the drawer, "there's not sign of forced entry, and intruder didn't knock anything over or pull out any other drawers, indicating he knew right where to go, meaning he's probably been in the house before."

Sara dusted the drawer and lifted all of the prints off it. "So, the case should be a slam dunk, right?" O'Riley asked, shifting his weight to his other foot.

"Not necessarily," Sara informed him, "the ex-boyfriends prints in the house isn't very suspicious. If-"

"What!" Clair yelled in a high pitched voice, storming up to the front door. "What do ya mean it isn't very suspicious? He's the one who did it!"

Sara slowly began to walk over to her, hoping that she wouldn't enter the house. "That might be true, Ms. Green, but-"

"_Might_? No, lady, he _did _do it! He said he was gonna get me back for dumpin' 'em!" Some of her drink spilled onto the carpet.

"Ma'am, you're contaminating-"

"Who gives a damn!" Clair shouted.

"O'Riley, could you…?" She pointed out the door.

He nodded and began gently pushing her away from the door.

"You bitch! Ya can't kick me outta my own house!" Clair retorted, splashing the rest of her drink in Sara's direction. Sara jumped back, but it managed soaked the bottom half of her shirt and the top part of her pants, causing them to stick to her body, making her baby bump clearly visible. _Why didn't I where my vest?_ She thought.

"Get her out of here!" Nick called, going to Sara's side.

"You alright?" Nick asked, his eyes scanning over her. They landed on her abdomen, and he stared for a moment.

"Yeah," she sighed, ringing out the end of one of her sleeves. She caught sight of is gaze, and cleared her throat, unable to hide her blush.

"Oh, um - here," he slid his arms out of his vest, "wear this."

"Thanks, Nicky." She slid her arms through it. It practically swallowed her.

They processed what was left without further incident, and without further conversation. Sara was too embarrassed to talk to him at the moment. She hoped it would stay that way. But as the got into the car and she gave him back his vest, her noticed that her cloths still hadn't dried.

_Crap._

She was going to have to walk into the lab like this.

XX

Nick was silent the entire ride back to the lab. The awkwardness and tenseness was so strong you could cut it with a knife. Sara's heart was beating-what felt like-a million times a minute. Of course he had noticed, anyone would have, but why wasn't he talking to her? It was killing her.

"So…" she began, trying to break the awkwardness, "h-how do you think we'll get this guy? If it is the boyfriend, I mean."

"Dunno," was all he said.

Once they pulled into the lab's parking lot, Sara noticed that Nick parked a _lot_ closer to the entrance than he had before. Nick got out of the car before her, so she took the alone time to look at her shirt. It was still damp, but it didn't stick to her as much as it had before. But her bump was still noticeable.

She huffed out a frustrated sigh, and got out to help Nick. Only to find him carrying everything they'd collected by himself.

"Um…Nick?" Sara asked, "do you need any help?"

"No, no, I'm fine. Grab your kit and lets head inside." He said quickly, walking towards the labs entrance.

She was still confused, but agreed. She grabbed her kit, closed the trunk, and fallowed him into the building. She was able to hide her poking belly and the stain on her shirt by holding her kit in front of her. It wasn't how she usually held it, but it worked until she was in the locker room, searching through the cloths she kept in her locker.

Once she found the outfit she'd been looking for, she hurried to one of the stalls at the hidden part of the locker room. After she had set her dirty cloths into her locker, she began to look for Nick, but a familiar-and unwanted- voice stopped her.

"Why the change of cloths, Sara?" Asked Hodges in a mock-intrigued tone, "did something happen at the scene?"

"…yeah," Sara said slowly, "the home owner got pissed and slung her drink at me."

"Ah," he said, in the same mock-intrigues tone. He looked as though he was about to continue, but Sara beat him to it.

"See ya, Hodges." she said quickly, followed by her nearly running down the hall.

_Damn him! _She thought, gripping her hair in her hands. _Damn that little creep! Always looking for something to rub in you're face. The second he finds out the whole lab is gonna know._

"Hey, Sara, you alright?"

"Yes!" Sara snapped, thinking Hodges had followed her, "would you just-"

She turned, and was surprised to find Greg standing behind her, wide eyed.

"Oh, sorry Greg," she sighed, putting a hand to her forehead, "I thought you were Hodges."

Greg gaped at her. "I'm offended!"

Sara laughed. "Sorry to offend you,"

"But, seriously, are you okay?"

"Yeah, I just had a rough time at the crime scene, and Hodges is being…Hodges."

"Okay," Greg said, satisfied that she hadn't lied and said she was 'fine'. At least she told him what was bothering her. Sara walked away from Greg, but with a small smile on her face. While some people were out to make her miserable, there were many more watching over her.

"Finally!" Sara exclaimed, walking into the layout room, "I've been looking all over for you, Nick."

"I had to make a few stops." He said, "I already dropped the prints we pulled in Mandy's lab, and the blood evidence with Greg."

"Now what?" Sara asked, her hands on her hips, "we just sit and wait for results?"

"That's what it look like." Nick sighed, just as frustrated as Sara. This was one of the few cases where certain things-like fingerprints-didn't matter. If the boyfriend really had done it, he could claim that he had been asked to get her jewelry from the drawer for her, or that he helped her put it together when she bought it. And he could claim that he'd cut himself while doing so, which would explain the blood.

"Have you processed the drawer?" Sara asked, dully.

"Not since we where at the crime scene."

"Maybe there's some trace evidence on it." Sara pointed out, her tone hopeful. Moments later, they were each scanning over it with a magnifying glass, but found nothing. Sara sighed. They just couldn't catch a break. After putting the drawer in an evidence box, they headed to the break room.

Sara plopped down onto one of the two couches, resting her arm on the arm rest, and Nick did the same on the other side of the couch. Only then did she realize how tired she was. She remembered only a few months back when she could stay up for three days straight-if necessary-on nothing but coffee and snacks from vending machines. Her eyelids suddenly became very heavy. It was times like this that she really wished she could still drink coffee.

Nick rose from his end of the couch, causing Sara jump slightly. He walked over to the coffee maker, and grabbed himself a cup.

"You want some coffee, Sara?" He asked over his shoulder, once the coffee had finished brewing, "you look tired."

_Of course I do! _"No thanks," she answered, leaning back into the couch.

"Ah, come on," Nick said, pouring her a cup anyway, "I haven't seen you drink coffee in weeks. Have some,"

"No, Nick. I'm fine."

"Sara, you're about to drop," He offered her the cup, "drink."

"Nick, I…I-" she sighed, she knew what he was up to. "I…can't."

He smiled, satisfied. "Didn't think so." He dumped her cup into the sink, then rejoined her on the couch, his arm around her shoulder.

"So," he said, his voice low, "is it Hank's?"

She looked down at her lap, remembering her conversation with Grissom. After a moment, she shook her head. "No."

He looked at her, baffled. The Sara Sidle he knew was not one for one night stands. "Do you…have a new boyfriend?"

She thought about Grissom again. He didn't say that she couldn't give the guys hints. Then again, he didn't say that it was okay, either. But she didn't want to seem like a knocked-up-tramp, either. He own words were ringing in her head. _"I don't want to lie anymore."_

So even though she knew that Grissom would be furious for her doing so, she decided not to lie to Nick.

"Yes,"

He almost looked relieved, Sara noticed. He gave her a look for her to continue, but she didn't. "Are you gonna tell me who he is?" Nick asked. She shook her head.

"Why?" Nick asked, his voice teasing (but louder). "You think we'll tease you again?"

"Uh…yeah," she agreed, going along with it.

"Well," Nick sighed, "I'd do the same. I'll get to meet him though, right?"

She wanted to tell him that he already knew him, but that was pushing it. "Yes. But no grantees when you will, though."

Nick made a snort. "You're not gonna wait until, you know, after it's born, are you?" He asked, his voice much lower than before.

"Aah," she said, unable to contain her smile, "after _they're _born."

Nick gaped at her again, but his 'O' shape quickly turned into a huge smile. "Twins? Seriously?"

She nodded, her own smile growing.

"Are the two of you happy?" He asked, his holding a hint of concern.

"We're…" She paused, and pursed her lips, thinking about it. "Thrilled."

Nick pulled her over with the arm he had on her shoulders, hugging her. "That's great, darlin'."

She smiled against him. This felt so much better than lying. "Do you mind keeping this between us?" She asked.

"Of course I will."

Before their conversation could continue any further, Sara noticed O'Riley walking towards the break room. Nick downed his coffee, and the two of them stood, walking towards the rooms entrance.

"Sidle, Stokes," O'Riley called, "I've got some good news, and bad news."

"What's the bad news?" Nick asked reluctantly.

"Bad news is, Clair Greene went after he ex, they fought, and it was pretty bad. Good news is, her ex had all the jewelry he stole from her _still in his pockets_."

With that, Sara and Nick headed back to the locker room to get their kits.

XX

They followed O'Riley to the new crime scene, and weren't surprised by what they found. Clair and her ex were screaming at each other from across the parking lot with cops struggling to hold onto them, police lights flashing, and a crowd of bystanders forming behind the crime scene tape. Both of them knew that it was going to get ugly, they just hoped they were out of it.

They exited the car, kits in hand, and met up with Detective O'Riley as he came out of the pawn shop, a tape in his hand. "Footage from inside the shop, it has the ex-boyfriend trying to sell him the jewelry." He said, handing I to Nick. After securing the tape, they walked up to the officers that were holding back Clair's ex, Jason Hall.

"Has he been interviewed?" Sara asked.

"Yeah," answered one of the officers, "he claims that he had no idea that the jewelry was even in his pockets."

"It's da truth, man!" Jason sputters out.

"Picture that," Nick mumbled, setting his kit down. Only a few second later, though, he picked it back up.

"Why don't you process him, and I take care of-"

"No," Sara stopped him, knowing where he was going, "I'll be fine, it's not like she has anything to drink this time."

Nick couldn't help but smile at that. He turned and began to process Mr. Hall, while Sara walked across the parking lot, over to Clair.

"Not you again!" She whined, struggling to get out of Officer Metcalf's grip.

"Hey, if you hadn't gone after him, I wouldn't be here." Sara pointed out.

She heard Clair mumble something rude under her breath, but chose to ignore it. She pulled out her camera and began to take photos of the bruises on Clair's arms when she heard a scream from behind her.

She turned and saw Jason Hall running at them, full speed, Nick and the officers were right on his heels.

Sara was quick to get out of the way. She could only watch as Officer Metcalf slung Clair behind him, attempting to stop Jason. Sara watched as Clair took off in the other direction.

"Nick!" Sara called, pointing in Clair's direction.

He looked up, saw what Sara was pointing at, and took off after her. Sara's focus was on him and the-in her opinion-psychotic woman he was chasing, and not the group of officers that was trying to control Jason, tumbling toward her.

Had she been focused on them, she might have been able to dodge the fist that made contact with her face, sending her spiraling toward the ground. She wanted so badly to just lay there, but with the riot still tumbling right for her, she rolled out of the way, but didn't stand. Only when Nick and another officer had locked Clair in a police car, did he help her to her feet.

"Sara, what the hell happened? Are you alright?" He asked, pulling her to her feet.

"I…I don't know." She managed, taping the area where she'd been hit. Just the slight amount of contact made her face burn. Nick let go of her for a moment, but when she started to fall back, he grabbed her again.

"You need to sit down," Nick said, walking her over to their car. He went around and got an instant ice-pack from the first aid kit, and handed it to her. She didn't protest, and put it up to her face.

"I'm going to go get everything, and then I'll be right back." Nick said, trying to stay calm. "Okay?"

"I'm not a baby, Nick," Sara said, glaring at him with her good eye, "don't treat me like one."

"'Kay," he breathed, jogging back to where he left his kit. If she was able to smart off, he figured she would be fine. But he was still taking her to the hospital, just to be safe.

XX

The sun had started to rise by the time Nick and Sara made it back to the lab. She had been checked out at the hospital, and the doctor's said everything was fine. But, by the time the reached the lab, a huge, black bruise had formed on Sara's face. Her eye was swollen, but she could still see out it. It took up most of the left side of her face, covering her eye, just above her eyebrow, and stopping at her lip. Jason Hall had a big hand.

He'd offered to take her home, but she refused, wanting to wrap up this case and not have to worry about it.

"I really don't want to go in their, though" Sara whined.

"Well, what are you gonna do, stay home for a week?" Nick teased, walking around and opening the door for her.

"Shut up," she huffed, getting out of the car.

It had been the left side of Sara's face that had been hit, so it wasn't visible from any of the offices or other rooms on her right. But the people who did notice made no attempt not to stare.

"Do you mind logging in the evidence?" She asked, "I'll meet you in the layout room."

"Sure thing," Nick said, patting her on the shoulder. Sara walked as fast as she could to the layout room, thrilled to find it empty. She leaned against the large table in the center of the room, her back to the door.

It seemed to take forever for Nick to meet her there. But once he finally did, they processed the little evidence they'd collected, and were done in about an hour. Sara was in a lot of pain, but she hid it well, enough to where Nick couldn't tell. After meeting up with Archie, after he had processed the tapes, they knew the case was closed.

"We've got him on tape trying to hand off the jewelry, and we have Clair on tape assaulting him. Two-in-one!" Nick laughed. Sara only let out a small laugh, knowing that it would hurt if she smiled.

A few minutes later, they sat in the break room again. Sara sat at the table this time, though, hiding the left side of her face from anyone who walked by.

"Does it still hurt?" Nick asked.

"Not really," Sara lied. Her entire face was throbbing. "I think I'm going to head on home," she said.

"See ya next shift," Nick said as she turned out of the room.

Before she even knew where she was going, she found herself standing in front of Grissom's office. The door was only half way open, so she couldn't tell if he was in their or not. She didn't him to worry about her, but she hated leaving without saying goodbye to him. She slowly opened the door.

The door squeaked as she opened it further, getting his attention. The smile that appeared on his face only lasted a second, once he caught sight of the bruise. Sara stepped in, closing the door behind her. The moment the door was closed, Grissom was out of his seat and had pulled her over to the couch at the other end of his office.

"What happened?" He finally managed to ask.

She told him everything. She even told him what she had told Nick, about having a new boyfriend, and being pregnant. She expected him to get mad for telling him, but he didn't. Instead, he pulled her close to him, kissing her forehead.

"I'm so glad you're okay," he breathed against her, kissing her again. Sara felt tears in her eyes. She'd had a horrible shift, one of the worst in a long time. She'd had her cloths soaked at a crime scene, been annoyed (and even a little creeped out) by Hodges, been punched in the face, and been (and would continue to be) in excruciating pain.

But Grissom made all that go away.

XX

**Again, I'm so, so, SO sorry for the long delay. But, hey, at least I didn't give you another cliffhanger, right? I hope you continue to read, and don't forget to review!**

**TBC!**


	8. Chapter 8

**Note: I didn't forget about you guys, I've just been very busy with sports, school, friends and family. But I can't thank you guys enough for the reviews, you all rock! Now, I've done a ton of research (and a loooot of math) and have pretty much decided when the twins will be born. I've got most of the rest of the story planned out, so I hope that will help me write and update a little faster. Unfortunately, school has started, so that will slow things down. I hope you continue to read!**

**Also, a new character will be introduced in this chapter. It's nothing big, and probably not who you think it is, but I thought this would be a good time to put him in the story.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing, all mistakes are mine.**

**Chapter 8:**

It had taken a full two weeks for Sara's bruise to fully heal, and now she could finally leave her home without covering her face in makeup, or wearing unnecessarily large sunglasses. But, with her being fourteen weeks pregnant; just barely into her second trimester, people were becoming less distracted by her (now gone) bruise and more distracted by her growing abdomen. She couldn't wear any of the old jeans or shirts she used to wear. She'd gone out and bought cloths that she could wear; at home and at work, hoping that if it didn't cling to her like her old cloths did, it wouldn't be as notice able. It worked, but not for long.

By the time she was at week fifteen, she felt like all the pregnancy symptoms were coming all at once. Her feet were beginning to swell, she had horrible migraines, stretch marks had begun to form around her stomach, she craved pickles and ice cream; together, no less, she would sometimes become breathless, and-as of only a few days prior-her mood swings had become a lot more frequent.

And Grissom had been there for it all.

He massaged her feet, most times without her even asking. He'd told her about old remedies to relieve migraines, such as massaging certain part of her head. He'd gone out and bought her whatever crazy food she was craving, no matter how late or early it was. He would stand; or sit-depending on how bad the situation was, by her side until she could breath properly again. And he would allow her to cry on his shoulder, scream at him for getting her pregnant, then laugh about it…All in thirty seconds.

But she wasn't the only one experiencing changes,

Grissom had been so busy filling out the paperwork that had piled onto his desk while he was on medical leave, taking care of almost all of Sara's needs, and working his cases, that he had allowed his beard to grow. He would usually shave it once every week, but with him being so busy, he hadn't had the time.

"I can always shave it off," he had told Sara.

"Why? I like it," Sara had told him, tracing her fingers over his face, "I've never seen you with one before."

He decided not to shave.

Now, with the month of June being almost over, Sara was now at sixteen weeks. She'd received many "Congratulations!" and, "Twins? No way!", and, "You're naming one of them after me, right?" from the people she worked with (the ones who didn't already know). She had also received a few questions regarding to who the father was, so she told them everything she'd told Nick: She had a new boyfriend, and they were happy.

Therefore, she wasn't lying.

In Sara's mind, she was the luckiest person in the world.

XX

"Only one case tonight, guys." Grissom announced, entering the break room. Something in his tone told Sara that it was not a good case. _Then again, _Sara thought, _when is a case ever good?_

"It looks like a double suicide, but the mother's of the victims are suspicious." Grissom explained. He briefed them on the case, and he gave Sara strict instructions to be careful. "Oh, come on, Grissom." She said, "what could go wrong?"

Grissom mentally shuttered. "Those are some famous last words, Sara." He half-joked.

She glared at him, but then continued to her locker. She knew he was teasing her, but being serious at the same time. He was only looking out for her, she knew, but she wished he would let up, just a little bit. She was a big girl, she could take care of herself.

XX

It was almost ten when they arrived at the scene. Brass informed them that the two dead victims were cousins. They're names were Anne and Lisa, they were the same age (sixteen), went to the same school, and as of two months prior, the slightly younger Anne and her mother Irene moved into the house. He'd already begun interviewing the mothers' when the CSI's showed up.

"Do either of you know why your daughters may have done this?" Brass asked the two grieving mothers.

"No," Lisa's mother, Melanie, sniffled, "They were both 'A' students, popular, happy…" she closed her eyes and choked out a sob at the last word.

"That's why we called you guys," Irene spoke up, pulling her sister closer to her, "we just don't get why they would do this."

"What about they're fathers?" Brass asked, scribbling the information in his notes, "where are they?"

"I'm divorced," Melanie said, pulling away from her sister slightly, "Lisa goes to see him every other weekend. I haven't even told him yet…"

"My husband died last year," Irene sighed, "that's why we moved in with Melanie, the girl's were so happy, they were already like sisters."

Brass continued to interview them for a few more minutes, while the CSI's continued to process the scene. The two girls, who were only sixteen, were both hanging from ropes that were tied to the top of their bunk-bed.

"They could have stood up if the wanted to," Sara noted, her voice dark.

"Yeah," Grissom agreed, walking over to one of the bodies, he noticed that there was marks on both of their necks that didn't match with the rope. "I don't think this was a suicide."

Back outside, Brass had finished interviewing the two women. "Thank you for your time, ladies." Brass said, beginning to walk away from Irene and Melanie. "I'm truly sorry for your loss."

He turned his back on the two ladies, and walked towards the house, where Grissom and the others were beginning to exit. "You guys done?" He asked, slipping his note pad into his pocket.

Grissom nodded. "I think they were right, Brass." He spoke, his tone low, "both of the victim's had bruises on their arms, underneath the sleeves of their shirts." He looked at the two grieving mothers over Brass's shoulder, making sure they weren't listening. "They were right," Grissom whispered, his attention going back to Brass, "this was more than just a suicide."

Brass nodded in agreement, and watched as the coroners pulled the to bodies out of the house. The sound of the women crying behind him could probably be heard for miles.

XX

"What's the T.O.D.?" Sara asked.

"Somewhere between seven and eight o'clock." Robbins answered.

"The bodies were discovered at nine-fifteen," Warrick noted.

"Cause of death?" Grissom asked, nodding his head toward Lisa's body.

"Suffocation by strangulation." Robbins answered.

"What about Anne?" Sara asked.

"Same thing."

Sara looked back at Grissom. His theory had been right, they hadn't hung themselves. "Is there anything else?" Warrick asked, braking the slightly uncomfortable silence.

"One other thing." Robbins began, "on a hunch, I did a sexual assault kit on both victims. Both of them had been raped minutes before death. And from the looks of the old and new bruises on Lisa's arms, legs, and waists, I'd say this has been going on for quite some time."

Sara closed her eyes, struggling to comprehend that someone could do such a horrible thing to two young girls.

"I found semen in both of them, and sent that along with something I found underneath Anne's nails to DNA." Robbins pointed to Anne's right.

"Anything else?"

He paused. "They were both pregnant." Robbins added, his voice dark.

All eyes shifted to Sara. She looked down at the table, suddenly feeling very self-conscious.

"H-how far along were they?" She managed to ask, not taking her eyes of the table.

"Lisa was ten weeks, and Anne was seven."

Grissom's head shot up. "That's right about the time that Anne and her mother moved in with Lisa and Melanie."

"No way that's a coincidence." Warrick said, shaking his head.

Sara's blood was boiling. Warrick was right, this was no coincidence. There was only one person that came to mind that could have been doing the horrible things that were done to those girls.

"We need to interview Lisa's father."

"I'll call Brass." Warrick said, heading for the door. As Robbins slid one of the bodies back into the cooler, Grissom squeezed Sara's hand.

"Are you okay?" He whispered, knowing how uncomfortable she must have been.

"Yeah," she nodded, squeezing back before pulling away. "I'll catch up with you in a minute."

He frowned, but walked away anyway. It wasn't like her could sit her down; like they did at home, and talk to her in the middle of a room full of dead bodies. Once she heard the door click shut, she let out the sigh she'd been holding in since they walked into the morgue.

"Sara?" Doc. Robbins asked, walking over to her, "I didn't mean to upset you. But-"

"It's fine, Doc," she assured him, forcing a smile, "I know you didn't mean to."

"Don't take this the wrong way, Sara, but.." he trailed off, waiting for her response. Her eyebrows furrowed, but she nodded for him to continue.

"I told my wife about…your situation," he gestured towards her stomach, "and I was wondering…when the babies are born, who will watch them when you come back to work? I didn't know if your boyfriend worked or if one of your parents planned on watching them, but-"

"W-we both work," she stammered. She always did when anyone mentioned her 'boyfriend', because all she wanted to do was respond by saying 'Grissom' instead. "And both are parents live out of state. Why…?"

"My wife loves babysitting," he chuckled, "she said that she would be happy to watch them for you."

Sara gaped at him, taking a step back to stop herself from falling. Robbins had just taken a huge part of all her stress off of her shoulders, and she didn't even have to ask. "I…uh…I…"

He grinned at her, reaching out with one arm, pulling her in for a hug. "You're welcome."

XX

Martin Mclone had been found at a bar not far from his house. It had taken him a few hours; and a several cups of coffee, for the alcohol to finally fade away. When he had been told about his daughter and niece had died, he didn't so much as blink. He said Melanie had called him and told him, and that was why he was at the bar.

"Really?" Brass asked, looking through his notes, "when did she call you?"

"Ah, I dunno," he stammered, "about nine-thirty. Y-Yeah, nine-thirty, 'cause I got to the bar at ten."

"Well, that's funny, Martin, because when I interviewed your ex at _ten_ o'clock, she said she hadn't even told you yet."

For a split second, a look of panic crossed Martin's face. But as quick as it came, it vanished.

"Oh, y-yeah, that's right." Beads of sweat formed on his face, "she called at _ten-thirty, _and I got to the bar at _eleven_."

Brass didn't believe him for a second.

"How'd you get the scratch on your face?" Brass asked, pointing to the three deep gashes on Mclone's cheek.

"Saw a stray cat this morning, tried to feed it, and it scratched me." He explained, his eyes flickering from Brass to the table, then back to Brass.

"So, Marty," Brass said, ignoring the mans poor excuse and slowly walking around the table in the interrogation room. "Where were you last night from seven to eight p.m.?"

"I was at home." Martin answered, his hands fidgeting on the table.

"Can anyone verify that?"

Martin shook his head, his head drooping dramatically.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk." Brass said, shaking his own head. "I'm afraid I'm going to have to get a DNA sample from you pal."

"What?" Martin exclaimed, his head shooting back up, "why?"

"You wanna know why?" Brass asked, his anger rising, "I'll tell you why: Your daughter and niece are _dead, _and just before they were _murdered, _they were raped. DNA was found under Anne's nails, consistent with her scratching someone."

"I don't see what any of this has to do with me," Mclone pointed out, his hands balling into fists.

"Well, the judge did, so he gave me this here warrant," Brass sneered, waving the paper in font of him. Just as he did so, Nick walked out of the viewing room, and into the interrogation room.

"So, open wide."

"No!" Martin slammed his fists onto the table. "I want a lawyer. _Now_!"

"You'll get your lawyer, after I get my DNA sample." Nick said.

Martin stood, grabbed his chair and slung it in Nick and Brass's direction. It missed them, narrowly, and slammed into the glass mirror that divided the viewing room from the interrogation room.

The two officers who had been standing by the door jumped into action, grabbing Mclone's arms and holding them behind his back, who had began screaming out, both in pain and anger.

Seeing his opportunity, Nick hurried over and swabbed the inside of Martin's cheek, and hurried out of the room before Martin could protest further.

The others were already waiting for him when he exited the room.

"All we have to do now is test this against the DNA found in both girls, and we've got him."

XX

Sara lied in Grissom's bed, tears streaming down the side of her face, pooling around her ears. Her hair was pulled back into a damp ponytail, due to the tears and just getting out of the shower. She had never, in all her years of being a CSI-or even before-, been so discussed in her entire life. Martin's confession was ringing in her head, eating her alive.

Martin Mclone had been raping his daughter since she was fourteen in a half. _"That was when Melanie and I met," _he had said, _"Lisa look just like her…"_

Lisa had never told her mother. _"I told her I'd kill them both if she told."_

After later interviewing Melanie and Irene again, they discovered that Lisa had refused to go over to her father's house many times, but every time she fought with her mother, the later she got to her father's, and the later she got to his house, the worse it was.

Perhaps she hoped that if she was on time, he wouldn't hurt her.

He had done it almost every weekend she came over. The only time he didn't was when she had a friend over, so Lisa thought it would be safe to bring Anne with her once they moved in. And for the first week, it was.

But eventually, the safety was gone, and he went for Anne, too.

Anne never went to the house again. Eventually, Lisa began playing sick, just so she wouldn't have to go to her dad's. That worked the first time, and the next, but this time her wasn't going to settle for a 'no'.

"_I waited until Melanie and Irene went to the movies, and then I broke into the house." _Mclone had explained, no hesitation in his voice. _"After I went into their room, they told me that they were pregnant, It's sent me back some…memories with Melanie, so I strangled them with my bare hands." _He had closed his eyes for the first time through out the whole interview, then glared up at Brass.

"_How could something like that, take you back to a moment with you're ex wife?" _Brass has asked.

"_Because I did the same thing to her."_

Sara cringed as his words went through her mind again. After talking to the mother again, the story was confirmed. When Melanie was seventeen, and Martin was almost twenty, the two of them had been together for two years, and after having a huge argument, he raped her. She found out three months later that she was pregnant, so the two married. They moved in with Irene and her husband, (who were both in their mid twenties) who were also expecting a baby. Nine in a half months later, Lisa was born, and two months later, Anne was too.

_Two lives, so young, so innocent, cut so tragically short, _Sara thought, wiping her face, only having it soaked by more tears moments later.

"Sara?" Grissom asked, stepping out of the steaming bathroom, just getting out of his own shower, "honey, are you still awake?"

"That bastard." Sara growled, turning her back to the door of the bathroom, purposely hiding her face from Grissom, "that sick, horrible, _fucking _bastard!" She cried, burring her face into her pillow.

Grissom knew that this was very hard on her. Most cases like this were hard on anyone, but Sara always took these very personally. He didn't know why, but that was who she was, and he wouldn't change her for the world.

"Look at it this way," Grissom tried, pulling on his boxers and climbing in next to her, "we put the sick bastard behind bars, that's gotta be good for something, right?"

"Yeah," she sniffled, "but two innocent girls had to be tortured and killed for us to be able to do that."

He pulled her closer, wrapping his arms tightly around her. He wasn't sure how long she cried on his arm, but eventually, when there were no tears left, she closed her eyes and fell asleep, her head resting on his chest.

As carefully as he could, he slid out from under, doing his best not to disturb her slumber. He hated seeing her like this. Even before they were together, seeing her upset broke his heart. Sighing, he absently wiped his hand over his face, as if that would make all his problems go away. But of course, he knew, it wouldn't.

When he looked back up, he found himself standing in front of their calendar. He'd stared at the thing numerous times, hoping that if he stared at it long enough, the worst of his days would go by faster. Sometimes it helped, other times it did the opposite.

He stared at all the dates the two of them had circled in the cliché red sharpie, like on the calendars in the classic romance movies, where a couple was marking down the days with that bright red marker, excitedly waiting for some special day to arrive.

Now, he and Sara were that classic couple, circling doctor appointments, putting a little star on the days where something special happened, and mentally counting down the days that their twins would arrive.

The thought of his two unborn children brought a smile to his face. He always wondered what it would be like to have a family. Like most expecting fathers, he couldn't help but wonder if he'd be any good at parenting. _What if they don't like me? _Had gone through his mind so many times, he couldn't count.

His eyes landed on the seventeenth of July, the date where him and Sara were going to find out if they were having boys, girls, or both. But, lately, he'd begun to wonder if he really wanted to find out. There were very few surprises in life, why waste them? Then again, it would be a lot easier for them if they went ahead and found out. He'd have to talk to Sara about it. Later, of course, she was sleeping now.

The tree loud 'knocks' that came from his door brought him from is thoughts. The sun had started to rise, he noticed. How long had he been staring at that calendar?

"Hello, Mr. Grissom!" His overly-cheery, two-houses-down-the-road neighbor, Sandy Mercer, greeted.

"Hello, Sandy," he put on his best smile, despite his mood, "what brings you here?"

"Well, a friend of mine's dog, had a litter of puppies a few months ago, and she told me to ask around, see who might want one. Do you think you'd be interested?"

"I don't know," Grissom sighed, "I have bad hours at work, so I don't know how much time I'd get to spend with a dog. What kind is it?"

"A Boxer."

Grissom thought about it for a moment. He loved dogs, and he knew Sara did, too. Perhaps a puppy would be a good present for her?

"I'll come take a look at them," he finally said, "where does she live?"

Her face lit up, "just down the road, it's not far at all." She turned, gesturing for him to fallow.

"Hold on, just a sec," he turned on his heel, and headed for the bedroom, and peeked inside the door. Sara was still sound asleep. He wrote her a quick note, taped it to the bathroom door, and finally walked back outside.

"Should I get my car?" Grissom asked.

"Probably," Sandy agreed, "it's a tad to far to walk. Just follow me there."

The drive wasn't long at all, and shortly after they left his house, they pulled into the driveway of a small, pale blue house. A woman, probably in her mid thirties, was sitting on a chair on her porch, a huge smile on her face.

"Thank you for coming, Mr. Grissom," the woman smiled, reaching her hand out to shake his, "my name is Jessica."

"I don't know if I'll actually buy one, Jessica, I-"

"I think once you see their sweet little faces, you'll just _have_ to get one." Jessica said, entering the house.

A large, tan Boxer sat in the middle of the floor. Grissom guessed that that was the mother, and four, and much smaller puppies surrounded her, climbing and running around her. Jessica sat Grissom down on the couch in front of the dogs, and began her presentation.

"The big one is Daisy, she's the momma, and belongs." Jessica patted the dogs huge head.

"This one," she picked up the largest puppy of the litter and sitting him in front of Grissom "is Trunk. He's the biggest one. He weighed about a pound heavier than the others when they were born!"

Grissom stared down at the puppy. He was a lighter shade of tan than his mother, and had deep brown eyes. The puppy met his eyes for a short moment, then tried to chew on his shoes.

"No, Truck! Bad!" Jessica popped the puppy on his bottom, then set him back next to his mother. "I'm sorry, Mr. Grissom, their still teething."

"It's fine." Grissom smiled.

"This one right here," She picked up another puppy, this one smaller than Truck, but not the smallest of them all, "is Joey. She's got a ton of energy."

Sure enough, when she let go of the puppy, Joey leapt for Grissom, landing in his lap and licking at his face. He blocked her, and put her back on the ground. This one definitely wasn't for him.

"That black one right there is Lucy, I'm keeping her, but this little guy is up for sale." She picked up the smallest puppy and set him in front of Grissom. It was a little male puppy, who was about the same shade of tan as his mother.

The puppy stared up at him with big, brown eyes. Grissom smiled and scratched the dog behind one of his ears. The little guy practically melted into Grissom's hand.

"This ones name is Hank, y'know, like the baseball player? This little guy is an absolute angel." Jessica smiled.

Grissom mentally cringed. _Hank? The dog I want had to be named Hank? _"Hank." Grissom whispered, and the puppy's head whirled around, looking up at him. _No changing it_, Grissom thought.

"But for some reason, no one will take him" Jessica said, her voice sad. "No one seems to want runts."

"How much is he?" Grissom asked, patting the little guy's head.

"Fifty bucks."

Grissom looked up at her in surprise. Sandy had said they were purebred, so he'd expected more.

"Even after I said he had all his shots, was a purebred, and was the sweetest out of the litter, no one would take him. I just want him to go to a good family."

Smiling, Grissom scooped the puppy in one arm, and pulled out his wallet with the other. "I'll take him."

XX

"Sit,"

Hank sat.

"Good boy!" Grissom whispered, tossing a treat to his new little companion.

"Stay," he tried, taking a few steps back. Hank didn't budge.

"Good boy," he tossed another treat.

He'd been out for close to an hour with his new little friend. Buying food, treats, toys, and even a nice red collar and leash. Hank even new a few tricks, thanks to his previous owner. All Grissom had to do now was wake Sara up.

Tiptoeing into the bedroom, he found her exactly how he left her: curled up in the middle of the bed. He walked over, brushing a few strand of hair out of her face. She looked so peaceful, he almost considered not waking her up. As if on cue, Hank whined from the living room. Sara stirred in her sleep, rolling onto her back. Grissom smiled, and sat down next to her, resting his hand on her plump belly. She moved her hand on top of his.

"Hi, honey." He smiled, watching as she opened her eyes. "Sleep well?"

"Surprisingly, yes" she sighed, squeezing his hand.

"I know the past few days have been rough on you, so," he paused so he could stand, "I got you a present."

Her eyes widened. "A…a present?"

His smile grew wider, "close your eyes."

"That's a very dangerous thing to ask a pregnant woman to do, Grissom." She teased as she climbed out of bed.

"Humor me, Sara."

She rolled her eyes, but gave in and closed them. He took her hand in his, and carefully led her to the living room. Hank was still sitting where Grissom had left him, but he fidgeted with excitement as they walked into the room. Grissom mouthed 'stay' and pointed his free hand at the small puppy. Hank obeyed, and became very still.

"Okay," Grissom let go of her hand, "open your eyes!"

The first thing she saw were Hank's big, chocolate brown eyes starring back at her. Sara looked at Grissom, who was grinning madly, then back to the dog. "You…you got me a puppy?"

The confusion in her voice was enough to wipe the grin clean off Grissom's face. _Oh no, did I mess up? This was a bad idea. I'll have to take him back, I-_

Sara's childish giggles brought him from his thoughts. Sara was scratching Hank behind his ear, and he was leaning into her hand, just like he'd done with Grissom earlier. He slowly walked over, and sat down next to her.

"S-so, you like him?" He asked nervously.

"He's precious, Grissom!" She giggled, holding Hank's head in her hands. "What's his name?"

"Hank."

She stopped playing with the dog, and looked back at Grissom. He held his hands up in defense, "his previous owner already named him!"

She stared back down at the little guy, who was chewing on one of the toys Grissom had bought him. "Spot?" She tried.

Nothing.

"Uh…Sam?"

Nothing.

Grissom laughed, "Hank." Hank's head whirled upward, starring at them.

"Well," Sara thought for a moment, patting the puppy's head, "he is pretty cute…"

As if on cue, Hank hopped on the couch next to her, licking her hand. Giggling madly, she hugged the brown ball of fur, who licked her cheek. "Thank you, Grissom. This really made my day." She smiled, leaning on his shoulder.

He planted a kiss in her hair, and reached behind her to pat Hank's head. After several quiet minutes passed, Grissom stood from the couch, taking Sara's hand with him.

"Come on," he said, gesturing for her to stand, "lets take him for a walk."

Sara was quiet for a moment before she stood up with him. Finally, she nodded in approval. Beaming, Grissom attached Hank to his leash, and the growing family set out for their walk.

They walked to a park that was only a mile or two away from Grissom's house. There wasn't many people around; most kids were still in school, and most adults were still at work. After a few minutes of walking, they sat down on one of the benches that were scattered throughout the park, and watched Hank roll in the grass.

"I was looking at the calendar, earlier today," Grissom began, wrapping his arm around Sara's waist, "and my eyes landed on July seventeenth." He saw Sara beam out of the corner of his eye. "and, well, I got to thinking…and…I was wondering…do we _really_ have to know what they are? I mean, wouldn't it be fun to just wait?"

He'd expected her to think about it for a while, but to his surprise she responded quickly.

"I was thinking the same thing, the other day." She agreed, "we can still go, but, we don't absolutely _have_ to find out."

"But," she continued, "I would like to know; if there is any way to tell, if their identical, or fraternal."

"Well, if there is such a way, I'd like to know, too." Grissom agreed.

"Then it's settled?" Sara asked, looking up at him.

Grissom beamed, and pressed his nose against hers. "Settled."

XX

**I'm sorry this one is a little short, but It's been way to long since my last update. I apologize for that. Time just hasn't been on my side lately. I hope this was worth the wait. Please read and review!**

**TBC!**


	9. Chapter 9

**Note: The number of reviews dropped a little, but I can understand why. For those who have stuck with this story, I can't thank you enough! I wish I hadn't taken to long to write this, but it's almost Christmas, so here's a present to all those who have stuck with me!**

**Also, the chapters are probably going to start being shorter. Mainly because it is easier for me to write them that way, and it will help me post them quicker. Would you rather me do this, or stick with the longer chapters?**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing, all mistakes are mine.**

**Chapter 9:**

It took a few weeks for little Hank to settle in completely, and for his new 'parents' to get used to his puppy ways. It took him some time to get used to going to the sitter; a sweet young lady named Alice. Hank wasn't completely housebroken, either, but after a few pops on his nose, he learned he could only do his business when they took him for walks. He was also teething, and had developed a new love for chewing on the legs of chairs. But, after a few treat-filled chew toys, he abandoned the chairs.

This time, it was Sara who found herself in front of the calendar. In just over a week, Grissom would see their babies for the first time. Technically, it was his second, but he'd never seen them outside of the pictures. She'd never been so excited, yet so nervous at the same time, in her life.

She felt to hands wrap themselves around her shoulders. "Looking at it won't make it come any faster, honey." Grissom whispered into her ear.

"I know," she sighed in a mock-sad voice. "I'm just…excited."

"I know you are," he moved his arms around her waist, giving her a gentle squeeze.

"Come on," she said, pulling his arms off her, "we need to get ready for work."

"How long do you think you'll stay?" Grissom asked. Over the past few weeks, Sara had been leaving work much earlier than normal. He knew, even though she hadn't told him yet, she would be taking her maternity leave soon. Not that it bothered him. It was nice to have someone to come home to.

"I was hoping to stay the entire shift, actually." She said, confidently. Grissom gave her a look, making her laugh. "Honestly, I was! But I don't know if I'll be able to."

"Well, my dear," Grissom whispered, "only time will tell."

XX

The only case that came in was an assault outside a strip club; which no one would let her go to, after what happened with the Jason and Clair case. After a few minutes of arguing, she finally complied, and let Warrick take the case alone.

Grissom was in his office, taking care of _more_ paperwork, and Catherine took the day off, so it was only Sara and Nick in the break room.

"So, Sara," Nick said, breaking the silence, "how you been lately?"

"Fine," she responded casually, "I have an ultrasound appointment coming up." She admitted.

He looked at her with wide eyes. "Really?" He rose from his chair and headed over to the coffee maker. "Are you going to find out what you're having?"

"Sort of," Sara laughed, remembering her conversation with Grissom, "do you know if there's a way to find out if they're identical, or fraternal? Y'know, before they're born."

"I'm not sure," he answered after a pause, "there might be, but I'm not a doctor." He winked.

Sara rolled her eyes and smiled playfully at him, unaware of the mental turmoil Grissom was going through in his office.

XX

_Grissom's office, 5 minutes earlier._

Grissom sat hunched over at his desk, scribbling his signature on a sheet of paper when his laptop beeped, warning him that the battery was low. He picked it up to plug it in, then he realized that he had an email. Curious, he plugged his charger in and clicked on the email, and the color drained from his face.

_From: Mom_

_Subject: Hi, Gil_

_Message:_

_Hi, Gilbert! I've missed you so much, you never visit me anymore! I just wanted to know how my boy was doing, and that I was hoping I could come visit soon. Let me know when the best time is._

_Love,_

_Mom_

Grissom's mouth went dry. He had yet to tell his mom about Sara. He'd been so busy dealing with everything, he hadn't even told her he was dating someone! How was he supposed to tell her? He couldn't just hide the fact that she was going to be a grandmother; she had the right to know.

He took a deep breath, and began typing.

_Hi, mom. Wow, so much has happened since we last talked. I hope I can explain it all._

_Well, I have good news. I've got a girlfriend. We've been together for a while now, her name is Sara Sidle. But, I don't know how to say this lightly…that's why I want to tell you in person. Let me know when you get this. I'll let you know when there's a good time for you to come out, Sara doesn't even know I'm sending you-_

With that thought, he stopped typing. He couldn't just send this without telling Sara. He rubbed his eyes with the pads of fingers, and backspaced everything.

He needed to talk to Sara. But not here. This was not the right place. But, this _would_ be a good place to _make plans _to talk with her.

XX

Nick had left her alone over an hour ago, leaving her to her thoughts. She started taking notice of everything that happened at work. She remembered how tiring it was just to walk from her car to the building; something that had never bothered her before. Maybe it was time, she thought. Time for her to take her leave.

Sara looked up, and found herself just feet from Grissom's office. She didn't even realize she'd gotten up to walk. She wasn't entirely sure if she wanted to go in, but before she could back out, the door opened.

Grissom jumped back, obviously startled. "Sorry," she said, struggling to hide her laughter.

"Don't be," he began to back into his office, "I was just about to come get you."

"Oh," She said, "I was about to come talk to you, too."

He shut the door behind them and gave her a questionable look, "really?"

She nodded.

Grissom sat down at his desk, and motioned for her to sit in front of him. "Can I talk first?" She asked. He was confused, but nodded.

"I've been thinking a lot, lately…" She began, slowly. "…and, I think it's time I took my leave. If I don't do it now, I-"

"Sara, honey," Grissom interrupted, a gentle smile on his face, "you don't have to explain yourself."

She smiled back. _I always over talk around him._

"But," his smile vanished, "I have some news of my own."

"Don't tell me," Sara joked, "you're taking a maternity leave, too?"

Grissom couldn't help but laugh. He closed his eyes, and his mother's email flashed into his mind. His smiled quickly faded.

"No," he answered her joke, then continued. "I…got an important email today. It was from my mother."

"Ok…"

"She wants to come visit." He said, much quicker than he meant to.

Sara looked like she could pass out at nay moment. "Wh-what did you tell her?" She managed.

"Nothing, yet," he assured her, "I wanted to talk to you first."

She looked somewhat relieved. "Can I read the email?"

He nodded and motioned her over to his side of the desk. After reading the email, Sara walked back over to the other side of the desk and sat down. For what felt like forever, she didn't say a word. He didn't really know what he wanted her to say, or what she might even say, he just hated the silence.

"Email her back." She finally said. "Tell her everything."

Now it was Grissom who didn't know what to say. "Just like that?" He asked.

"Think about it, Grissom. She's your _mother_, she has the right to know about her grandchildren." She looked away, shaking her head. "I can't believe I haven't told _my_ mother."

She could hear Grissom typing a response to his mother, but she didn't look up. She was wondering how to tell her own family. She hadn't talked to her mother in months, and she hadn't heard from her brother in over a year. She wondered if her mother had kept in touch with him.

"When is a good time for her to come?" He asked, taking her from her thoughts.

"After the appointment." She answered, much quicker than he expected. "That way we wont have anything going on when she gets here."

He finished typing and allowed Sara to review the email. After getting her permission, he hit send. "Now what?" He asked after a pause.

"I guess you need to get my paperwork." She teased.

Within two hours Sara and Grissom had filled out all the paperwork. Everything was ready. Her last day of work was in two days.

XX

Sara sat alone in her apartment that night. She and Grissom had decided to spend the night away from one another, so they could talk to their mothers. Grissom had already been sending messages to his mother since he got home. He'd called Sara and told him what his mother had said.

"_She's more shocked than anything, but she says that she's happy for me-for us."_

His words were comforting, but not very encouraging. She had the phone in her hand, but couldn't bring herself to dial the number. So, she called a different number instead.

"Grissom, I can't do it."

"_Yes, you can, Sara." _She heard him laugh.

"No, I can't! You told your mother through email, you didn't have to hear her voice."

"_Sara, my mother is deaf, that's a little different."_

"I know," she whined, "but still…"

"_Honey, I'm sure that she'll be happy," _Grissom said in a soothing voice, _"when you're about to tell her, just take a deep breath, and tell her everything."_

"Ok," she sighed, "thank you."

"_Don't worry Sara," _he assured her, _"everything will be alright."_

They said their goodbye's and she hung up the phone. She forced herself to hit the buttons, one by one. Before she could stop herself, she hit the call button. She paced around the living room until she heard her voice.

"_Hello?"_

"H-hi, mom." Sara stammered, her heart racing. Silence met her on the other line for what felt like forever. Then…

"_Sara?…Is something wrong?"_

"N-no, mom, everything's great." Sara replied, running her free hand through her hair, "there's just…something I need to tell you."

"_Ok.." _

She inhaled deeply. There was no going back now. "Well, first off, I ended my relationship with Hank, an-"

"_Oh, honey, I'm sorry!" _Her mother exclaimed, _"why? I thought-"_

"It's a long story, mom," Sara interrupted. She'd have to explain that story later.

"But, leaving Hank led me to find…uh…something else."

"_Some_thing _else?"_

She couldn't help but laugh; her mother wasn't easily fooled. "Well, some_one _else."

"_I thought so." _She could hear the smile in her mother's voice.

"Well, here's where things get a little crazy." She laughed nervously. "S-something happen-" she heard a light gasp come from her mother.

"_Sara, are…are you p-"_

"Yes, mom." Her heart pounded in her chest, "I'm pregnant. Just at nineteen weeks, and I'm having twins."

Her heart pounded, beads of sweat formed on her forehead, and tears stung in her eyes. Her mother didn't say a word for a long time, and when she did, it wasn't what Sara had been expecting.

"You know," she began, her voice lighter than expected, "I had an identical twin sister, but, she died in a car accident when we were twelve."

"Oh, mom, I'm-"

"Don't." He mother cut her off, "lets focus on you right now. Do you know what you're having? Are you and your boyfriend living together? What's his name, anyway? Are-"

"Mom!" Sara laughed, relieved by her mother's light tone, "one question at a time, please."

Sara and her mother talked for hours. She told her mother everything, and she kept a positive attitude the entire conversation. _Her judgment is clouded by the fact that she's finally going to be a grandmother. _They talked until, finally, Sara was too tired to continue. She said goodbye to her mother, and collapsed on her bed. She wondered if Grissom's mother had been as happy as hers, but she fell asleep before she could call him.

XX

The next day at work was like the previous one; uneventful. Catherine and Nick were out at a grocery story robbery, and Warrick was still working on his case. Grissom was still filling out paperwork, but allowed Sara to talk with him in his office.

"So," Sara began, looking innocently around the room until she met his eyes, "how did the talk-or, emails, with you mom, go?"

"She said she's happy for us, and that she wants to meet you as soon as possible."

"Did you give her a time to come?" She asked, "I didn't give my mom one, I wanted to talk to you first."

"I did the same thing."

They shared a short laugh before returning to a more serious mood. "I think," Sara began, placing her hands on his desk, "that your mom should come first."

"Really?" Grissom asked, surprised. "I was thinking your mom should come first."

Sara sighed, "I had a feeling you'd say that."

"So, what do we do?" Grissom asked, his head leaning on one of his hands.

They stared at one another for several minutes, voiced their opinions about who should come first and why many times, until they finally came to a decision. Grissom's mother would come first, and then Sara's mother would visit the week after.

The night went by quickly, and Sara was proud of herself for staying the whole shift. She helped Warrick close his case, and clocked out a few minutes after the end of her shift. She decided to go to her apartment before heading to Grissom's for breakfast, in hopes of tidying the place up before her mother came.

It was there, when she reached to clean the top row of books on her bookshelf, when it happened. It came so sudden that she dropped her cloth she had been dusting with. She fell back onto her couch, and stared down at her abdomen in awe. Slowly; almost fearfully, she rested her hand on her stomach, just to make sure she had really felt something.

A moment passed, and nothing happened. Then, with a slight jerk, she felt it again. She picked up her cell and immediately called Grissom.

"_Hi_," he said warmly.

"Grissom, you need to get over here, _now_!" She told him, breathless.

He didn't ask why.

XX

Using the spare key she'd given him, Grissom barged in the front door. He could see her sitting on the couch, and rushed to her side.

"Are you ok? You're not bleeding, are you? Do-"

"No, I-Grissom, you need to calm down."

"Do you hurt? Where does it hurt?"

"Griss-"

"Are you sure you're not bleeding? Do you feel dizzy? Are-"

"Gil!" She'd never called him by his first name. That got his attention.

"I. Am. Fine." She assured him. "Give me your hand."

He was confused, but he gave her his hand. She smiled, and slowly moved their hands to her stomach. Not a second later did one of the baby's kick again.

His eyes grew wide, and he met hers. A moment later he smiled, pulling her into a deep kiss. When they parted, she tucked her head under his chin, and they sat on the couch together, in a state of pure bliss.

XX

**So, what do you think? Please review, and I promise to update soon!**


	10. Chapter 10

**Note: Thanks to everyone who reviewed! I hope this chapter was worth the wait.**

**Chapter 10: **

Days went by like minutes, and before she knew it, she was sitting in the same small ultrasound room that she'd been in a little over ten weeks ago. Only this time, she had Grissom at her side. Their nurse, the same she'd had before; whom she now knew as Megan, had left the room only a few moments earlier, giving them a minute of privacy. Sara held Grissom's hand in hers, and then realized how bad he was shaking.

"Are you nervous?" She asked, propping herself up on her elbows.

"No," he said, "more like…excited."

The nurse walked in a moment later. "Ok," she smiled whilst pulling on a glove, "are you ready?"

The pair nodded simultaneously, and the nurse began to prep Sara for the ultrasound. Minutes later, a deep blue image appeared on the screen. Two bodies were seen, and both were wriggling around in the tiny space they shared.

"Well, both babies seem to be healthy," Megan smiled, "In just a moment, we'll here 'A' baby's heartbeat."

With a few clicks of her mouse, the room filled with the sound of a beating heart. "Good, very good." Megan said. Sara peeked at Grissom through the corner of her eye; he hadn't said a word sense the screen had turned on. His eye's eyes were wide, and his mouth slightly agape. He'd never seen anything like it.

Pictures were taken of 'A' baby, and the nurse quickly moved on to 'B' baby. It's heartbeat played just like it's sibling's had. "How great," Megan cheered, "it looks-and sounds like-you two have two perfectly healthy twins!"

Sara and Grissom let out sighs of relief, and met each others eyes.

"Now," Megan began, "I remember you asking if I could find out if the twins were identical or fraternal. I've been doing this for almost six years, and have only had about…" She thought a moment, "twenty twin pregnancies, and more than half were fraternal."

Megan stopped talking and zoomed out, so that both babies were in view. She studied them for a moment before continuing. "But, I can tell you that you two are most likely having identical twins."

"Would you mind explaining?" Grissom asked, "I'm just…curious."

"It's no problem," Megan insisted. "Ok," she started, " see this right here? That's the placenta. Now, if their were two placentas, then no doubt they would be fraternal. _But, _there are some rare cases where the placenta's of fraternal twins can fuse together, but it's very unlikely."

She paused, allowing the pair to absorb the information before continuing.

"All in all, there's still a slight chance that the twins are fraternal, but it's very slim. So, the likelihood of Sara having a boy and a girl is small as well. But, the only way to be positive is a DNA sample after the twins are born."

Sara stole another look at Grissom out of the corner of her eye. He was beaming.

"So, you two are positive that you don't want to know the sex of the babies?" Megan asked, "If not, I can give you the statistics on twin births."

They looked at each other and thought for a moment, then simultaneously they both shook their heads.

"Thank you, Megan, but, no." Grissom said, "we'll take some pictures, though."

Pictures were snapped of each twin, and some of them together. Sara had another appointment scheduled in seven weeks. This was going be another very important visit. Sara had mentioned that she'd hoped to give birth naturally, even though it was many times difficult to do so with twins. Megan had said that if both twins were in the right position; heads' down towards the birth canal, then yes, she could.

With that statement fresh in their minds, Sara and Grissom left the doctors and made it home in record time. Sara was so excited! _I can't wait to talk to Nick, _she thought after she remembered their conversation a few weeks ago.

"Identical twins," Sara beamed, wrapping her arms around Grissom and touching her nose to his, "can you believe it?"

"No," he breathed, pulling her as close as he could. They parted, linked their fingers together and made their way over to the couch. "I feel like it's a dream, and one day I'll wake up, and it'll all be gone."

She ran her fingers through his curly hair. "I feel the same way." She admitted, resting her head on his shoulder. Grissom leaned forward slightly, peering into the next room. Hank was asleep in his bed. _Good._

With his finger, he lifted Sara's head from his shoulder, looking into her eyes. "Does this seem real?" He asked, just before kissing her lightly on her lips. He surprised her, but she accepted his kiss. When they parted, he returned his gaze to her eyes.

"I…I-" She stammered. After shaking her head lightly, she leaned forward until she was only inches from Grissom's ear. "I think I need a little more…_convincing._" She whispered, very voice quiet and deep.

With a gleam in his eye, Grissom pressed his lips against hers. He wrapped one arm behind her, and used the other to lightly push her down on her back, afterward using to prop himself over her, trying to ovoid to much pressure on her stomach.

They started off with slow, passionate kisses, but gradually they quickened they're pace. Sara giggled as Grissom struggling to maneuver himself around her swollen abdomen. She scooted over enough for him to lie next to her, and once more their eyes met. This time, however, he saw something different.

"Sara," he said, "did I just…do something wrong?"

"No!" She insisted. "Gil," she began. She'd been calling him by his first name ever since she'd called him all those nights ago. "I don't know about you, but, I don't really remember our…first time. It only comes to me in bits and pieces, and those little pieces I remember are great. But, I want to remember _all_ of it. And…" she trailed off, struggling to find the right words.

"This is probably going to sound like I'm over reacting, but, whenever we have our _real _first time," she laughed shortly before continuing, "I don't wont to be…fat. I-I want it to be perfect."

He stared at her for a moment, not sure how to respond. "Sara," he tried; that was always a good way to start, "I understand, but I want you to know something."

"I know for a fact, that every moment I'm with you…_is_ perfect." He said, "And, I also know, that whenever we decide to…take that step, that it will be perfect."

She was quiet, so he tried to brighten the mood. "And, no, smarty; I'm _not_ just making this up to get laid."

With that she had to laugh. She rested her head on one of his arms whilst he wrapped his free one armed her. Grissom always knew how to make her feel loved.

XX

Nick's warm smile greeted Sara as she entered the break room the for her next shift. "So," he said, wrapping an arm around her shoulder as they sat on the couch, "how'd your appointment go?"

"Great," Sara beamed, Nick laughed.

"Did you find out what you're having?" He asked.

"Sort of," she answered, "We didn't find out the sex of either baby, but we did find out that we are having-well, more than likely having, identical twins."

Nick's smile spread further across his face as he pulled her in for a hug. "Wow, identical twins," Nick said, "you think you'll be able to tell them apart?"

"I hope so," Sara sighed.

"What about names?" Nick asked.

"Honestly, I haven't thought about names," Sara admitted, "but I don't want them to rhyme. You know, like 'Cindy' and 'Mindy', or 'Justin' and 'Dustin'?"

Nick chuckled and pulled her in for another tight hug, then released her to get himself a cup of coffee. A few moments later, Catherine and Warrick come strolling into the break room.

"Hey, Sara!" Catherine exclaimed, "how'd the appointment go?"

"We don't know what the genders are, but we are pretty sure that the twins are identical." Sara explained.

While Warrick walked over to Sara and pulled her in for a hug, Catherine turned to hide her smile as she poured her cup of coffee. _Grissom must be thrilled, _she thought to herself.

"Alright guys," said Grissom as he came around the corner, "assignment time." He said in a sing-song voice, waving the slips back and forth.

"Hey, Griss," Warrick said, pulling Sara to his side with one arm, "Little Miss Mommy-to-be over here is having identical twins."

Catherine coughed to hide her laugh, whilst Sara's face flushed a deep red and she, too, struggled to keep her self from laughing.

"Really?" Grissom played, raising his brow, "well, congratulations, Sara."

She pursed her lips before thanking him. He handed out assignments, giving Nick and Warrick a homicide in Henderson, and gave himself, Sara, and Catherine a hit-and-run out D street. When the three of them were seated in the car thirty minutes later; with Grissom in the driver's seat, Catherine beside him, and Sara in the back. As they pulled out of the parking lot, Catherine went into a fit of uncontrollable giggles.

"What's so funny?" Grissom asked, baffled.

"You two!" She laughed waving her finger between him and Sara. "In the break room…you guys should be actors!"

Grissom focused his attention back onto the road, whilst Sara only blushed.

XX

Days went by like hours, and before she knew it, it was Sara's last day of work. She had finished all of her cases, but hadn't told anyone about her maternity leave. Grissom was the only one who knew, and she had hoped to keep it that way-until the day came, that is. She had planned to tell them a few hours before the end of shift. That time was nearing, she realized, so she made her way towards the break room.

The hall were dimmer than usual, but not by much. Sara didn't think anything of it, and continued to walk down the hall. She did, however, take notice of the darkened break room. _Oh, no, _she thought, _please don't let this be some kind of surprise party. _She braced herself for the oncoming shouts of joy, then turned on the light.

There was nothing.

She let out a loud sigh of relief. _Good, now I can just relax and wait for the rest of the team to get here, _she thought as she dropped down onto the couch, grabbing her half-read book from her purse. She made it through three pages before all the night shift CSI's, plus Brass, and most of the night shift lab techs; including Greg, Mandy, Bobby, Archie, and even Hodges, came strolling into the room, hands behind their backs and looks of mock-innocence all over their faces. Sara looked over the edge of her book, and stared at them for a moment.

A split second later, they each revealed a wrapped or bagged present in their hands, with smiles from ear to ear. Sara closed her book and laughed, "how'd you know?"

Greg raised his hand, and judging by the look on Sara's face, she wasn't surprised. "I have my ways." He smiled, and handed her his gift.

She blushed, and waited for everyone to sit either on the couch with her or on the nearby table before unwrapping her gift. Inside was a very thick book; a children's book, filled with nursery rhymes and short stories.

"Aaww," Sara smiled, flipping through some of the pages, "thanks, Greg."

"You're welcome," he smiled shyly.

She set the book down on the counter, and received her gift from Nick. It was in a large red bag, with purple paper coming out of the top; which she removed carefully. She reached inside the bag, and moved her hand over the soft fabric that met her fingers. _Whatever it is_, she thought as she began to pull it out of the bag, _it_ _is one of the softest things_-

"Ah," she said, holding the two pink blankets in her hands.

"Now, before you get mad at me for buying _pink _blankets," Nick said, "unzip them."

_Unzip..? _Sara searched for the zipper on one of the blankets, found it, and unzipped it. Underneath the fluffy, pink fabric lied the same soft, fluffy material, only blue. "Oh!" Sara exclaimed, getting it, "wow, Nick, thank you." With that, Nick grinned and crossed his arms over his chest.

Warrick stepped up next, handing her his large, wrapped, rectangular shaped present. It was very heavy, she noted, as she placed it down on what little of a lap she had left. She unwrapped it slowly, but excitedly. The first thing that met her eyes was the image of two small handlebars. _Bikes? _She first thought. _No, too curved, _she concluded, she ripped of the rest of the paper, and got her answer.

"A stroller?" Sara asked, surprised.

"Not just a stroller," Warrick said, "a _twin_ stroller."

"My God, Warrick," Sara gasped, starring at the box, "this…this is way to much!"

"Ah, no it's not." He waved it off as though he was swatting at a fly, "I know you like to go for walks, so I figured, why not take the kids with you?"

Sara ended up opening presents for two hours. She got a set of magnets from Mandy; magnets that she could insert pictures into. She got a video camera from Archie; she nearly refused to keep it, insisting that he'd spent to much.

"If it makes you feel any better, I know the guy who owns the store," he'd explained, "I got it for half off."

That did make her feel a little better, but she still felt like it was too much. She vowed to use as much as possible. She received a huge scrapbook from Catherine; "something every mother needs," she'd said simply. From Bobby she got a diaper bag; "there's even a place for you gun in there," he'd teased. Grissom gave her something she'd expected; subtle, yet unique; a picture frame with the word _Family _at the top of it. She thanked him, but struggled to keep herself from calling him 'honey', or 'baby'.

When Hodges handed her a small, not even wrapped box that she could hold with only one hand. _Probably a cheap gift card, _she figured. However, she got something she hadn't expected; A necklace, a heart-shaped locket necklace.

"So you can put each baby in there, and carry them with you everywhere you go." he sang poetically. Sara was momentarily speechless.

"Wow, Hodges," she managed, "this is very….thoughtful."

She gave everyone their well deserved hugs; hanging on a little longer when she reached Grissom, and thanked them once more, telling them that she didn't know what she would do without them. They helped her carry the gifts to her car, where she said her goodbye's one last time, and she left the lab with tears in her eyes. She couldn't stop smiling, however, and held that same smile as she unloaded her gifts into her apartment, as she showered, and even as she closed her eyes and fell asleep, snuggling with the two teddy's Nick and Warrick had gotten her when she was in the hospital after the lab exploded. _It was as if the knew, _was the last thought to drift through her mind. A few hours later she felt Grissom slide into bed with her, and wrap his arm around her.

XX

After Grissom left her the next day to head into the lab, Sara headed to the store. She hadn't realized that her fridge was almost empty until she had opened it for breakfast. She finished off the rest of her milk and cereal, and after kissing Grissom goodbye, she went to her favorite grocery store-one that was open all day, everyday. She was reaching for a box of cereal when she heard someone call out her name. She hadn't heard this voice in quite some time, but it was one she could not forget.

"Sara?" This one was closer, like whoever it was had started walking over to her. She turned to face the voice's owner, hoping she'd made a mistake. She hadn't, and when their eyes met, she could have sworn her heart stopped. All she could manage to do was squeak out his name.

"Hank."

XX

**See? I told you I would update faster! Did I surprise you? I hope so! Please review!**


	11. Chapter 11

**Note: Thank you to everyone who reviewed! I loved them all, and they always make me smile. I am trying to update and publish as fast as I can, but this is exam week. I passed my art test (only one in my class to get a 100!) It wasn't an exam, but it counts for 25% of my final grade, so it was pretty sweet! I have a big English exam on Tuesday, so wish me luck!**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing, and all mistakes are mine. "ASL for Babies," is just a random book name I came up with, so if there is one with that title out there I take no credit for it.**

**Chapter 11:**

The world around them seemed to go silent. All she could see was his eyes-the eyes she'd hoped she wouldn't see again. She wanted to leave. She wanted to run out to her car, and leave, but his strong hands on her wrists prevented it, no matter how hard she pulled. At this time of night, there were very few people in the store, so no one was around to help her; other than the cashiers, but they were on the other side of the store.

"What do you want?" She finally asked.

"_What do I want_? I _want_ to know why you didn't tell me you were pregnant when-" He paused, shook his head, and let go of her wrists. "How could you keep something like this from me?"

"How could _you_ not tell _me_ that you were seeing_ someone else _when I asked you out?" Sara retorted.

"That's a little different, Sara." He growled, "this is a _baby_! How could you leave me when-"

"They're not yours!" She yelled, putting her hands up to keep him from getting to close.

"How could it _not_ be? Wait, _wait_…they? Twins! My God-"

Sara was fuming. "Hank, I met someone else went I left you, and these are _his_ children, _not_ yours. I've moved on, Hank, you should too. You're not in my life anymore, and I don't want to be in yours." She grabbed her cart and started to walk away, but Hank's hand on her arm stopped her.

"How can you be so sure?" He shot back, taking a step closer, "that they're not mine? What, did you let him in your bed the day you met him? That's the only way they couldn't be mine! You didn't sleep with me until we'd been together for six months, yet you screw around with this guy after the first date?"

With that she slapped him. She hadn't meant to, but she was just so _angry! _The impact of the slap stung his face, and sent his anger through the roof. He grabbed both of her wrists and slammed her into the nearby wall.

"I want a DNA test." He fumed, "the minute those babies are born. And if they're mine, I'll take you to court, and see it that I get full custody of them."

With that said, he let go of her wrists and left walked back to the front of the store, leaving a terrified Sara behind.

XX

"It's been less than twenty-four-hours, Sara" laughed Nick, "and you're already back here?"

Sara jumped at the sound of her name. Once she realized it was Nick, she relaxed, and played it off. "Yeah," she laughed nervously, "have you, uh…seen Grissom anywhere? I need to see him right quick."

"Yeah, he's-" He paused, noticing the dark bruising on her wrists. When she'd left only hours ago, those bruises weren't there. Sara looked down to see what he was staring at, and was surprised herself to find the bruising.

"Hank," she whispered, pulling her wrists up and turning them to get better look.

"What happened to you, Sara?" Nick asked, gently holding her arms to examine them.

"Nothing," she insisted, pulling her arms away. She tried to walk away, but Nick-gently-grabbed her arm. "Ouch! Nick, let go of me."

"Sara, I barely touched you," Nick informed her. He lifted up her sleeve and found yet another bruise, with four large dots on one side, and one even large on the other side, like she'd been grabbed by someone.

"Who did this to you, Sara?" Nick asked, his voice low and full of concern. She stayed quiet and starred at the floor. Nick was like her older brother, but she wasn't sure if she should tell him. This would definitely send him over the edge.

"Sara, you have to tell me who did this," he whispered, pulling her against him.

"Hank." She mumbled as a tear made it's way down her cheek.

She wasn't looking at him, but she could by the way his body tensed that he was furious. A long time past before he spoke again, and when he did, it was in a voice that she hadn't heard him use before-or at least in a long time.

"That bastard…" he growled, his nostrils flaring.

"Nick," she begged, "please, calm down."

He took a few deep breaths before he responded, "tell me what happened."

They stepped into the break room and sat on the couch. "I was at a grocery store," she began, "and he saw me and I tried to walk away, but he grabbed onto…my wrists," she looked down at her bruised arms. She told him how he insulted her, how she slapped him, how he grabbed her and slammed her into the wall, and how he wanted the twins to have a DNA test.

"What are you going to do?" Nick asked.

"I don't know," Sara shook her head, "I haven't even told Grissom yet."

"Why would you have to tell Grissom?"

_Shit! _"Uh-"

"Tell me what?" Asked Grissom, who was standing in the doorway.

"Oh, noth-"

"Griss!" Sara stood and all but ran over to him. "Can I talk to you…in your office?"

"Uh-sure.." Grissom said, unsure. _What is Sara doing here_? He wondered.

Once they were in the quiet, dark room that was his office, she burst into tears. He rushed to her side, holding her in his arms as she told him what happened. When she was finished, he wiped her face, and sat her down in the chair in front of desk, and he sat in the neighboring one.

"It's alright, Sara," he assured her, "we can get a restraining order against him, or-"

"Gil, that's not going to help." She said, "he thinks I'm having his _children_. I mean, the only way I think I can permanently get him off my back is to have a DNA test done on the twins."

"So, are you telling me you're going to?" Grissom asked, "I'm fine with it if you are. I don't see the harm in it."

"I know." Sara ran a hand over her face, then propped her head up on her hand. "It's just…the look in his eyes…I…he was never like that when we were together.."

"I'm so sorry, honey." He wrapped an arm around her shoulders, "it'll be alright."

XX

_One Week Later_

One week after Sara's incident with hank, Grissom had taken a week and a half off from work in order to go get his mother, and spend as much time as possible with her and Sara. He'd left right after shift so he could get a quick start on the long drive to his mother's home.

Sara's heart pounded in her chest. She stood alone in the middle of the luggage claim at the airport, waiting for Grissom to return with his mother. She hadn't seen him since he'd left four days ago.

She felt a sudden tap on her shoulder, and turned to stare into familiar blue eyes. She smiled widely, and wrapped her arms around his neck. "You don't know how much I've missed you." She whispered in his ear. When she backed away, she noticed how flushed his face was, then she saw his mother only a few feet behind him.

"Oh," she blushed, "/nice to meet you, Mrs. Grissom/," she said and signed, very slowly. Grissom had taught her a few basic things to sign, and this was one of the few she was somewhat good at.

Betty Grissom seemed to be surprised at Sara's signing, even though Grissom had told her he'd been teaching her. /_She's better than you led me to believe, Gilbert_./ She signed, /_a little slow, but good_./

"What's she saying?" Sara asked.

"/She said that you're signing is better than I led her to believe,/" Grissom said and signed, giving his mother a small smirk.

Sara smiled nervously, "/thank you, Mrs. Griss-/"

Betty put her hand up. /_Please, Sara,/ _she signed slowly, /_call me Betty./_

XX

Grissom had taken a week and a half off from work in order to spend time with his mother, as well as Sara. He'd left right after shift so he could get a quick start on the long drive to his mother's home.

Two days into her stay, she'd seen all the pictures of the twins (which Sara had put inside the scrapbook Catherine got her). Betty had also brought a present, one even Grissom know about. It was a book, titled ASL for Babies.

"Wow," Sara said, "/thank you, Betty./"

Grissom smiled and thanked his mother. Sara left an two hours later and returned to her apartment. However, she only gave him a small kiss on the cheek, her own way of teasing him about what had happened at the airport two days earlier.

/_She's a sweet girl,_/ Betty signed as Sara's car pulled out of the driveway. /_Very sweet. Have you two thought of names?_/

/_We've given it some thought,_/ Grissom signed back, /_but she is only twenty-four weeks, we still have around fifteen weeks, and-_/

/_Let me stop you there_,/ Betty interrupted, /_the average length of a normal pregnancy is forty weeks, and it is very rare for twin pregnancies to make it that far. A twin pregnancy is considered full term at thirty-six weeks, so I'd say that you two would be lucky if Sara was still pregnant in fifteen weeks_./

Grissom just sat there. His mother was right, and if things were to go as she had just described, he could be holding his children three months.

/_Well, then_,/ he signed with a wide grin on his face, /_I guess she and I should really start thinking about names_./

/_Well then, I will also tell you this,_/ Betty smiled, /_If you have girls, do not name one after me. I want my granddaughter to have her own name, not mine._/

XX

The rest of Betty's visit went by fast, but Grissom and Sara had enjoyed…_most_ of it. Sara was a little unsure of how to feel towards Betty, mainly because Betty was unafraid to show how she felt about Sara's relationship with her son. She said she was happy for them, but that she wished that they had, perhaps, gone differently about how they had started their relationship.

Grissom had returned to work the day after he had taken his mother home, and Sara had immediately started cleaning up her apartment for her mother's arrival. In one day, she had gone out and bought several much-needed groceries, cleaned up the guest bedroom, and tidied up the rest of the house.

It was nearly midnight by the time she had finished. She collapsed in pure exhaustion on the nearby couch, and was in a deep sleep only a few minutes later. She only stirred when Grissom came in at eleven o'clock the next morning. He smiled when he saw her sleeping form on the couch, and covered her with a blanket.

She didn't open her eyes until an hour had passed. She didn't know Grissom was there, but wasn't surprised to see him when se walked into the kitchen.

"What time did you fall asleep?" He asked as he sipped on some of Sara's caffeine free coffee.

"I'm not sure," Sara yawned, "sometime around midnight."

"Well, you did a great job," he smiled, handing her a mug, "the place looks amazing."

"Thanks," Sara said as she sipped her coffee.

"When are we picking your mother up?"

"In three days, that's when she's flying out here."

He was smiling, but when he looked at her, he realized that she wasn't. "Sara, is something wrong?" He asked as he walked over to her.

"No," she said, "I just haven't seen my mom in…over a year. I mean, I've talked to her on the phone, but that's it."

"I'm sure it'll be alright."

"You've been saying that a lot lately." Sara said, only half teasing.

"And I've been right every single time, haven't I?" He quipped.

She was silent, and struggled no to smile. "Shut up." She mumbled. This brought a quiet, chuckle-like laugh from Grissom.

_Ok, maybe he's right, _she thought, _maybe everything will be alright._

XX

"I'm so, so nervous Gil." Sara all but cried as they stood in the middle of the airport. She hadn't seen her mother in over a year, but she remembered her face like she'd seen her yesterday.

"Why?" Grissom asked, draping an arm over her shoulders. "Didn't she say that she was excited for us? I don't believe that she'll be mad at you."

"I know," Sara laughed nervously, "it's just…last time I saw her, I was…you know, skinny, and now my stomach is bigger than a basketball!"

"…And? Sara, I don't think your mom-"

"Look, Gil!" Sara gasped, "there she is!"

Grissom looked to where Sara was pointing, and noticed a tall brunette picking up her luggage. That had to be Laura Sidle. She looked almost exactly like Sara, but she looked much older, and her hair looked slightly faded.

As he and Sara approached, Laura caught sight of them. She only took her eyes off them to apologize to the people she was bumping into as she made her way to Sara and Grissom.

"Sara!"

"Mom!"

Both had tears in their eyes as they embraced each other. Laura wrapped her arms around her daughter as tight as she could, and Sara did the same to her. "I've missed you so much, honey…"

"I've missed you too, Mom." Sara laughed through the tears. Grissom couldn't help but smile as the two talked and hugged, then talked and hugged some more. "Mom," Sara began, "I want you to meet my boyfriend." She took her mother's hand and pulled her over to Grissom, who had started blushing as the approached.

"Gil," Sara smiled, "meet my mom. Mom, meet Gil."

Laura smiled a smile that resembled Sara's, only hers didn't have a gap between her two front teeth. "Gil Grissom," he introduced himself and extended his hand. "Laura Sidle," Laura shook his hand.

Grissom could already tell he was going to like this woman.

XX

That night, after Laura had seen all the ultrasound pictures, given Sara and Grissom a gift (a set of yellow booties that she had knitted herself) and well after Grissom had left to get a few hours of sleep before the next shift, Sara and Laura sat on the couch in Sara's living room.

"I'm so proud of you, Sara." Laura smiled, running a few fingers over her daughters hand.

"How could you be proud of….all this.." Sara chuckled and rolled her eyes, only half joking.

"Honey," Laura began, "I would rather you be unmarried, pregnant, and in a relationship with a man who loves you, than be married to a man like…" She trailed off, and her smile faded.

"To a man like Dad?" Sara asked quietly.

"Yeah." Laura sighed. "I know he loved me, and I thought I loved him. But, Sara, I can see that you and Gil love each other more than your father could have ever loved me. I had such big dreams for you and your brother, and you couldn't have turned out any better."

"When was the last time you talked to Aaron?" Sara asked.

"I saw him a few months ago…I'm proud of him too. You should see him now, Sara. He's clean off drugs and doesn't even drink anymore. I hope you don't mind, but, I told him about you."

"I don't," Sara shook her head. "Wh…what did he say?"

Laura let out a small laugh, "he said that if you have boys that he wants one to be named after him."

"Actually," Sara said, "Griss and I were talking about doing something like that. We have a couple of names picked out for boys.."

"Oh!" Laura exclaimed, "tell me!"

Sara giggled at her mothers excitement. "He told me that if he ever had a son, he'd want to name it after his father, Arthur, and I wanted to name on after Aaron. So, we came up with Arthur Grayson, and Aaron Gilbert."

"Aw, those are beautiful names, Sara." Laura beamed.

"Grissom wasn't to keen on naming one after him." Sara laughed, "he tried to say that if we had girls, one would have to be named after me. But after what felt like hours, I finally persuaded him not to."

Laura laughed. "What about girl names?"

"Neither of us could come up with anything we liked." Sara admitted.

"Your dad and I went through the same thing when I was pregnant with you." Laura informed her, "we had a boy name, but all we had for a girl was the middle name 'Mae', after your dad's mother. When you were born, and we found out you were a girl, we were stumped at first. But after they cleaned you up and put you in my arms for the first time, the name 'Sara' popped into my head, and you became Sara Mae Sidle."

"I thought about using Granny Mae's name as a middle name, just because it sounds so pretty, but I couldn't really think of anything to go with it."

"Well, I'm not going to help you with that." Laura put her hands up. "Coming up with names for your children is a fin thing for parents to do, so I'll let you and Gil do that." She winked.

They stayed up for a few more hours talking, and before long it was eleven o'clock at night. They said their 'I love you's', and went to bed. Sara heard her phone buzzing on her nightstand, she picked it up and saw that Grissom had sent her a text. She couldn't help but smile when she read it.

_I was just thinking, I love your middle name. If we have girls, I one to be named Amie Mae, after both of our grandmothers. I don't want it to be 'Amy' with a 'Y', I want it to be unique, like your name. Sara without the 'H'. Do you like it?_

_Miss you,_

_Gil._

Sara stared at the message for a minute, and then it hit her. She responded as fast as she could.

_I love it. Amie Mae and…Emilie Grace._

XX

**I worked hard to get this up before I went back to school, so please review!**


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